Final Fantasy XV: Twilight
by RivalAdmirer
Summary: "Live as if you're about to die tomorrow." It's been a while since I last heard that saying. Rather appropriate advice to give to someone who has already died once, isn't it? Well, let's see what this road leads to, shall we? It isn't like I have much to lose...or a choice for that matter. FFXV Reincarnated!SI/OC
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Only my SI/OC and my changes and ideas regarding this fanfic belong to me, everything else belong to its creators.

Author's Note: I welcome any constructive criticism anyone can offer me. And I'm really slow at writing given my life right now, so please be patient with me. Feel free to talk about your opinions. I would like to know about any concerns you might have, things you feel could be better, or what you think I should expand on, etc.

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Final Fantasy XV: Twilight

Chapter One

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 _You cannot, in human experience, rush into the light. You have to go through the twilight into the broadening day before the noon comes and the full sun is upon the landscape._

 _~ Woodrow Wilson_

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 _May 13th, M.E. 756_

 _When one wants to start a journal, I wonder, what should I say? I mean, there really isn't a precedence for journaling is there? Does one start with explaining their background? Their circumstances that lead to this point? I can't believe journal writing is so hard. People make it look so easy to write down what they think every day. Like, 'oh hey, I went to such and such today and had sooo much fun~! Isn't that just_ _ **grand**_ _?'_

 _Note the sarcasm._

 _I really don't understand how people can just talk about their everyday thoughts so easily and speak about everything that's on their mind without a care or worry that someone is gonna pick it up and read it. I mean, there could be some stranger just picking up their journal one day and be getting an inside look into their innermost, private thoughts. Very intrusive if you ask me._

 _I suppose should I first start explaining how I got the idea into my head that I should start writing in a journal. Cindy suggested that it would be a good idea to write down my thoughts so I could put them in order during my free time, especially given that I'm so absent-minded and tend to forget things easily. I can't say she's wrong about the absent-minded bit. But, I wish she'd have just a bit more belief in my ability to take care of myself. I've lived_ _ **this long**_ _without getting myself killed, so, a little_ _ **faith**_ _would be nice._

… _Then again, my absent-mindedness has gotten me into some fairly_ _ **sticky**_ _situations in the past. Like the time I accidently fell straight off that cliff and into that havocfang nest. Or the time that dualhorn nearly speared me as I was trying to figure where its territory was. Or that time I accidentally went through the floor of that ruin and landed amidst a group of flans._ _I've had some seriously bad luck in the past._

… _Okay,_ _ **maybe**_ _Cindy is onto something about me being a trouble-magnet with his head in the clouds. I can't help that my thoughts distract me when I'm researching something! Thankfully, in all of those cases I've been able to defend myself and have been able to get out of those situations with my life intact. Thank the Six for my danger instincts._

 _Still. I can't say for sure whether this whole 'writing down my feelings' therapy will work. But, I suppose I'll keep on keeping on. I just really don't get how bitching to a piece of paper is going to help. I mean, if I wanted to talk to an inanimate object, I'd just talk to a wall or something. I just don't get the point of why a journal could help me organize my thoughts._

 _Hah…_

 _I suppose I should stop complaining and start actually take this a bit more seriously so I can get this done and over with. For the day, anyway, as I doubt justing writing_ _ **one**_ _entry could be called journaling. First things first. My full name is Kieran Apollo Arenas. Most people either tend to call me Kieran or Arenas, either is fine. I am a researcher in the fields of daemonology, monster, and magical research, with a related side interest in history.. I also am a part-time alchemist and hunter as it helps my research while I'm hunting down daemons and monsters to collect potions ingredients and research samples._

 _As I've gotten the introductions out of the way, I better start with the reasons I'm on my current path. It would start with the end of my first life and the beginning of my second._

 _No, you didn't read that wrong._

 _Although, on my bad days, I_ _ **wish**_ _I was wrong. By the Six, I_ _ **really**_ _wish this had been some sort of mad fever dream my subconscious cooked up just to screw with me. Sadly, that wasn't the case. No matter how much I wish it was._

 _I suppose I should provide some context for exactly what happened. Basically, ever since I was a baby in my first life, I was born with a crappy immune system and it resulted in me getting colds and fevers and various other illnesses so often that my parents often worried about my health. Thankfully, as I got older, I didn't suffer through my illnesses quite so much. Honestly, my health has always been in a finicky state between normal and 'shits about to get fucked' sick. I suppose seeing as I was so used to getting sick, I underestimated how ill I actually was._

 _Although, my unhealthy habits of forgetting to eat or sleep when marathoning video games and studying for hours on end would have weakened my body even further in fighting off my illnesses. I had gotten so used to powering through my sickness to attend classes, otherwise I'm sure I would have missed most of the year due to my ill health. And my tendency to forget to buy groceries in favor of working to earn money so I didn't end up getting thrown out of my apartment and end up homeless, so I often skip eating several times a day and get snacks to tide me over._

 _So, it really wasn't_ _ **too surprising**_ _when I realized I had died in my sleep while I had been suffering through pneumonia._

 _Shitty luck, that._

 _Well, not really. That was more me not being careful enough and ignoring my health to the point that I died young. It was me just being far too careless about my life, so, really, I only have myself to blame for my situation._

 _In all honesty, the worst thing about dying and being reincarnated, is that you don't have a choice on whether you end up actually_ _ **wanting**_ _to end up being reincarnated and where you end up. You could end up being reborn into an utterly peaceful word, or like with myself, a world full of dangers and power-hungry pawns playing with forces they don't fully understand, while the_ _ **real**_ _puppet master watches and pulls the strings from the shadows._

 _So, uh, yeah. Apparently, I drew some unconscious reincarnation lottery and have been reborn in Final Fantasy XV. As in, the fictional world that is plagued by daemons, monsters, and an imminent war between two warring nations. And the same world where future King Noctis Lucis Caelum sacrifices his life to destroy the Starscourge and successfully restores the Light to the world to purge it of eternal darkness and prevent humanity from being killed off by said daemons, thus saving humanity._

 _Yay?_

 _Honestly, in all of my wildest dreams, I never expected that I would be chosen to be gifted with the opportunity to enjoy a second life. I mean, c'mon, let's be real here. An unimportant, unmotivated, twenty-five college student that's obsessed with video games and just plodding along in life isn't exactly your ideal pick for the honor of reincarnation. I mean, you'd figure a war hero, abused orphan, or some saintly figure would be a better choice than some average nobody, right?_

 _Right._

 _I thought when you die, well, that's_ _ **that**_ _. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, as the saying goes. I would have expected to die and then be reborn as an ant, only to be immediately crushed to an itty bitty ant smear by some human's foot. Or, you know, eaten by some ant-loving creature. Now_ _ **that**_ _, would be irony at its finest. To be reborn only to die instantly. Although, I can't imagine being crushed to death unexpectedly would very pleasant._

 _Thankfully, I had the fortune of dying in my sleep via death by pneumonia. Or_ _ **misfortune**_ _, depending on your point-of-view._

 _Needless to say, I spent quite a few minutes cursing the air blue at my circumstances once I realized_ _ **exactly**_ _where I was. Well, after I recovered from my panic attack over realizing I was dead and had been reincarnated. I ended up getting punished by one of the orphanage matrons that I had scandalized with my foul language. Before you ask, yes, I have been reincarnated, only to lose my family at a young age. My three-year-old self's memories are pretty fuzzy, due to my young age, on the exact circumstances, but I eventually figured out that they were killed in an tragic car accident. Or…at least, that's all I could remember was that it involved a car and blood. My memories are still a bit fuzzy about that time._

 _Yeah, I can see what you're thinking. Adding to the fact that I'm been reincarnated, I'm also a poor, sad_ _little orphan. My, I must have been so_ _ **traumatized**_ _and_ _ **angsty**_ _. All woe is me and all that crap._

 _Pfft. Yeah right, keep dreaming buddy._

 _In all honesty, I have the vaguest memories of my new parents and they didn't really leave much an attachment. I mean, sure, I_ _ **miss**_ _them, but…my memories of my original parents are much stronger and I feel more of an attachment to them. I…think that I didn't come back_ _ **all there**_ _. I think there's something_ _ **wrong**_ _with me._

 _I'll be the first to admit that I'm a seriously sensitive crybaby who gets sad and cries watching emotional moments in effing_ _ **movies**_ _. And yet, I feel disconnected to my parents in this life. I feel like, they're not really_ _ **mine**_ _. They are my three-year-old self's parents and I… just don't know._

 _Is it because I don't have very clear memories of them? Am I not caring enough? I miss them and feel affection, but…I don't_ _ **love them.**_ _Why am I not caring enough?_ _What is_ _ **wrong with me!?**_

 _No matter what I do, I can't change the past. I can only accept what I am and go forward. Heh, seems like a pathetic consolation. I…just have to keep trying and maybe… one day I'll be happy?_

 _Sorry for the all the 'woe is me' crap. I didn't realize I was still holding onto that… insecurity. Anyway, my reincarnation wasn't exactly…simple. I wasn't just reborn as a baby with all my memories intact. It_ _ **did**_ _affect my personality and intelligence to the point where I seemed a lot more intelligent than the average kid. I knew how read and write even before the matrons tried to teach me, they just thought I was a fast learner. I didn't know_ _ **how**_ _I knew what I knew, only that I_ _ **did**_ _know it._ _It was really scary._

 _I only just regained my memories at three-years-old and I was able to understand why I knew what I did. Trying to sort all of those extra memories was…_ _ **trying**_ _. Adding into the fact I suffered the_ _ **most painful migraine I would ever have in my short existence**_ _. Anyone who says getting memories out of nowhere doesn't hurt… well, they're blatantly lying to you. It hurts like something stabbed your head with a pickaxe_ _ **several times**_ _. I didn't realize it until later, but I had fallen unconscious for several days with a fever that just wouldn't go away, according to the matrons._

 _I suppose the stress of the memories being abruptly added caused my three-year-old body's brain caused my body to temporarily shut-down in order to cope. The matrons thought I was just going through another of my illnesses. My crappy immune system seems to have followed me into this life as well._

 _Damnit all. I mean, it just figures the same thing that killed me in my previous life followed me into the next. Am I gonna be cursed with ill health each time I'm reincarnated? It would just figure…_

 _Anyway, I was quite unhappy about my circumstances at the time and it took me a few years to learn to adjust to everything. And I got a rather_ _ **unpleasant**_ _surprise. It turns out I wasn't reborn on Earth at all. I was, in fact, reborn upon the fantastical land of Eos. More specifically, Insomnia, the Crown City and Jewel of the Lucian Kingdom. I'm not ashamed to admit that I spent a few months crying and throwing fits of sheer terror, fear, and worry. After all, I had just learned I had reincarnated into the same city that would soon be invaded and conquered by a rather power-hungry Empire. And that's not even taking in account to the idea of daemons, monsters, and all this other strange stuff. Thankfully, due to my young age, the matrons thought I was just throwing rather horrific tantrums because I was frustrated._

 _Ignoring of my irritation regarding my_ _ **unique**_ _circumstances, I can't deny that I do, in fact, appreciate this second chance at living no matter the dangers. After all, I've essentially gotten a head start into this new life and I can learn all the things I never had time or was unable to learn before. Especially about this new world I was living in. If you asked any of the matrons from that point, then they'd say I was a quiet, shy, studious little boy who was obedient to a fault._

 _Ha!_

 _They couldn't have been more wrong. I'm still as opinionated and stubborn as I always was. But, that image they had of me ended up working in my favor. It lead to the other children avoiding me as I wasn't 'fun' and my tendency to quote absolutely_ _ **fascinating**_ _textbooks scared them off a lot. Seriously, I had no idea Lucian economy and technological advancements were so interesting to read about. And it makes sense, why_ _ **wouldn't**_ _you try and understand everything about the new world you are now living in? You'd be an idiot not to._

 _Anyway, that all worked in my favor and allowed me to completely focus on my studies, although the matrons were often worried about my social skills and tried to force me to interact with the other children. I_ _ **accidently**_ _scared them off with various schemes. Needless to say, it was a complete failure all around on the matron's part. Eventually the matrons stopped pushing so strongly and thought that_ _ **maybe**_ _I would gain some social skills in school._

 _You know that kid that you remember always having their head in a book and_ _ **always**_ _acing homework and tests? The same one that has absolutely no social skills whatsoever and has very little interest in physical activities? And the one who always ends up getting bullied? Yeah, that was me. Well, except the bullying bit. Surprisingly, people tend to back off when you start threatening to stab them in the leg with a pen if_ _ **they didn't return my book**_ _. I got my book back, but I ended up getting in detention and having regular meetings with a psychiatrist after that. I'd say it went relatively well._

 _Although, said psychiatrist had me go through exercises on appropriate responses to people stealing my things. Basically, I was 'taught' the usual 'ask politely for them to return your things' and 'violence is never the answer.' Apparently, threatening to stab people isn't exactly the best response. The less said about the psychiatrist trying to get me to talk about my feelings, the better._

 _The self-defense lessons that I got suckered into were rather helpful as well. I suspect the psychiatrist had been hoping that working out my 'hair-trigger aggression through a controlled and disciplined environment' would help me with my anger issues. I just kept quiet about the fact that I usually hold onto my temper, but stealing from me was a line that shouldn't have been crossed._

 _Although, I have to admit, I may have overreacted to a kid trying to take my things. Anyway, we soon learned that I'm utter crap at using hand-to-hand, but I kept at it because punching bags helped with my frustration._

 _They handwaved the violent reaction as me being overly possessive of what belongs to me as I had already lost my parents. I call it 'I've lost my entire life due to dying and am now having to restart and adapt to a new one, so I'm not putting up with any bullying bullshit.' Not that I actually said it out loud to her face, but I was_ _ **definitely**_ _thinking it. Anyway, the matrons' plan in helping me socialize backfired in part due to me knowing_ _ **exactly**_ _what they were trying to do and partly because of my anti-social actions._

 _After that, I just ended up just speeding through my schooling and only interacted with people when necessary for a grade in group projects. The Pen Incident worked out in my favor and got all the other kids to leave me alone and stop them from trying to play with me. As well as enabling me to start school early and skip grades to speed through all of my courses. Although, I suppose my tendency to death glare any kid that so much as spoke to me helped as well._

 _Eventually, as the years went by as I kept at self-defense lessons, I was discovered to have a surprising affinity for using swords and polearms. Now that was really surprising. I wasn't particularly surprised when I had such low stamina though. My teachers were really strict and had me work constantly at improving my stamina and weapon proficiency. I may_ _have considered several murder attempt plans on particularly_ _ **bad days**_ _._

 _Okay, that's a lie, I was totally considering murdering my teachers each time my body gave out on me out of sheer exhaustion and when I spent_ _ **weeks on end**_ _with massive aches in muscles I didn't even know I had. My freaking_ _ **bones**_ _even felt like they ached during those years._

 _Anyway, getting back on topic to my whole reincarnation deal, generally the first thought that never pops into your head is 'I'm going to be reborn as a video game character.' I mean, let's be honest here, the idea of becoming an character in a game character would have never crossed my mind, except as a hopeful daydream given my love of video games. Never mind the fact that reincarnation is generally regarded as an insane pipe dream._

 _Probably one brought on by inhaling paint fumes that causes hallucinations._

 _As I said before, it's not that I don't appreciate the opportunity, believe me, I'm_ _ **very**_ _appreciative. But, you would think there would be someone far more worthy than I. Then again, reincarnation has always been seen as such a…random occurrence to me. Reincarnation has always had stories about that you'll be reborn with no memories beyond some moments of_ _déjà vu, well, apart from fanfiction writers doing reincarnation fics with SIs and OCs. Then you'll be reading about how they try and use their foreknowledge to their advantage and try and save everyone._

 _I can't say it wasn't tempting to try at first. I watched Kingsglaive and played through the entire story of the game and the ending is just…sad. But, really, what can one person with extensive foreknowledge really do? I'd be regarded as some insane crackpot and honestly, I don't have any pull to get people to listen to me. If I was reborn into the Lucian royal family, that would be a whole other story, but I'm not. So, no matter that I know what's coming, I can't change a damn thing. Besides, even if I was Lucian royalty, I'm still just one person and it takes more than one person to start a change._

 _Besides, knowing my luck, I could seriously screw things up and inadvertently cause the end of the world… okay, that's probably giving me too much credit. But, I'd rather not risk it. No sense tempting fate after all. Besides, if I tried to change things, it could lead to some seriously bad effects and I'd rather not get involved with that particular brand of nastiness._

 _All things considered, I'm surprised I managed to adjust so well to being reincarnated after dying and being reborn. I'm surprised I wasn't affected more. I'm surprised my mind didn't just snap and break._

 _Not to say that my mental state wasn't effected by my reincarnation. Given various opinions from many different people, my reactions towards life-threatening situations and 'general disregard towards mortal limits' and 'having the self-preservation of a brain-dead lemming' has been somehow off-putting for people. I would say having died once, I'm rather apathetic towards my general wellbeing. I mean, I just died once and it only took some readjustment to reorder my life._

 _Again, I'm lying a bit about that. I still feel a bit…uneasy about my place here. I still feel as if I don't really belong here and yet, at the time, I do feel as though I belong. It's pretty confusing. I'm proud of status as a Lucian citizen_ _ **and**_ _as a former American citizen. I'm not one or the other, I'm a combination of_ _ **both**_ _. I wouldn't be who I am without my years living in my past life. And yet, no matter how much I claim I'm still the same person I always was, I deny I have changed._

… _Wow, I'm really becoming a downer right now. I should focus on much more important things right now, like my research. Speaking of which, I recently got some information from Dave about a recently sighted mutated Dualhorn, which has shown the typical mutated aggressiveness and even a difference in color with its horns. He said that they were reported to being blood-red in color and emitting some sort of faint red miasma. We've codenamed it Bloodhorn as Hunters have been seeing them pop up all over Lucis._

 _It's strange, all other mutated monsters have been showing similar red traits. It could be possible that daemons could be infecting them somehow causing them to mutate. All animals and monsters are different than how they were hundreds of years ago, some of it due to climate change and people's ability to defend themselves so their very diets and patterns have changed. It's very fascinating to consider that the encroaching threat of daemons are causing monsters and other animals to mutate in unexpected ways. It's been happening all over Eos and all the time._

 _Ah, looks like I distracted myself._ _ **Again**_ _. Anyway, I need to finish up here quick and go check it out. Here's to hoping the hunters won't beat me to it. Although, now that I think about it, I wonder why the description of a mutated Dualhorn sounds so familiar? I have heard of reports about other mutated dualhorns being spotted recently, and yet, it still sounds strangely familiar…_

 _Well, whatever, it'll come back to me eventually._

 _-Kieran_

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The early morning sunlight shone brightly in through the windows of Takka's diner and straight into Kieran's face, making him squint painfully, bleary-eyed and irritable. Thankfully, his dark hair covered the left side of his face so he was only half-blinded on the light. But, still an unpleasant sensation first thing in the morning after an all-nighter. Kieran groaned and face-planted into his crossed arms to rest his eyes for a bit, just barely missing knocking against his empty plate and glass, hoping to get hide from the light.

The background noise of the locals and tourists chatting provided a semi-pleasant atmosphere, but still felt like needles digging into his head. He hissed irritably, waiting for the food, that he just ate, to work its magic and lessen the effects of his exhaustion.

That stupid journal writing took all night because he kept starting, stopping, and restarting. Seriously, who would have guessed writing in a journal was so difficult? It should have been just spit out a few meaningless sentences about his day and that would have been it. Once again, his perfectionist tendencies have bitten him in the ass. You really think he would have learned after the first few times he pulled all-nighters only to seriously regret his life choices.

The abrupt electrical sound of the radio turning on had Kieran twitching slightly in surprise, tiredly listening to the re-run of King Regis' official speech about the upcoming peace talks.

"—Some among you may regard the terms of this peace with apprehension. You may wonder if your king has forsaken his people, when it is for their very sake I have acted. The lands of Leide, Duscae, and Cleigne shall be ceded to imperial governance, granting us assurance…that the people of these regions will be spared any further bloodshed on account of this war. Life will go on, and all will continue to know liberty and prosperity."

Kieran lifted up his head and stared thoughtfully at the radio, turning King Regis' speech around in his head. 'Life will go on' huh? That's a pretty big hint to your impending death if I ever heard one. Still, the Prince surviving that disaster is likely what he's hoping for. But, it's unfortunate that all those regions will be placed under the Empire's tyrannical rule for some time, no matter how temporary. I suppose he wishes to spare his people the fury of the Imperial Army in what's to come.

Kieran tapped the table lightly, thinking about the situation. But, King Regis doesn't have much of a choice in accepting the Empire's terms of peace, now does he? He can't hold up the Wall forever and the Empire is ever-expanding at a ridiculous pace. He can only hope to end this on his own terms, while fighting tooth and nail to severely cripple the Imperial Army.

Kieran grinned darkly in amusement, King Regis is going to give as good as he gets anyway. Even when outnumbered and outgunned, King Regis has the sort of tenacity he couldn't help but admire. The unwillingness to give up even in the face of such overwhelming odds. Who wouldn't admire that? Although, some may call it foolish to keep fighting a losing battle. But, isn't that the point? Even knowing he might lose, he knows and hopes that there's still a tiny chance to see the future survive through the Prince.

Kieran sighed and leaned back against the booth chair, arms folded loosely against his abdomen. Still, he could never understand all the double-speak, word-play, and innuendo in the game of politics. And it truly _is_ a game. After all, there are only the highest stakes with grand prizes and severe losses is you win or lose. A game of life and death, if you will.

From a certain viewpoint, he supposed that politics is a game that makes everything worthwhile, especially if you can safeguard your country with it, but Kieran never had the kind of affinity for that kind of game. Playing at politics would be far too boring for him, even if it's intricacies are interesting. It's rather like watching master craftsmen work at their craft, even if an amateur can't possibly catch all the tiny details. Still, it's nice to appreciate its intricate nature occasionally.

Regardless, he hasn't got time to waste, things to do and places to be. It would be disappointing if he came all the way here only to get robbed of his chance to observe that mutated dualhorn just because he was feeling tired and lazy. Kieran grabbed his black long coat and bag as he slid out of the booth after leaving enough gil to cover his breakfast and enough for a significant tip.

Adjusting his bag and coat, he carefully went through his mental checklist. Kieran had already gotten enough supplies to his short trip, but it never hurt to be over prepared. Better to be over prepared then lose your life because you got too cocky. Kieran internally winced, remembering those dozens of times he wasn't prepared enough and practically had to drag his practically immobile body to a Haven or town after getting badly injured.

Plus, it never hurt to have a few extra restoratives on hand in case he came across a wounded Hunter, far too many died because they couldn't be healed in time. Potions and other restoratives may not be a cure-all, but they certainly helped a person long enough to get Haven or town for medical treatment.

Satisfied with his mental preparations, made his way out of the diner after saying his thanks and goodbyes to Takka and headed over to the store to grab a few extra restoratives and food supplies before heading out. After that, he'd best see Cid and see if there were any damages done to his spear. It's his only method of defense and if it fails him…he _really_ didn't want to think about that.

Thankfully, the spear is made out of purely Insomnian technology and seeing as it's been modded _twice_ , it's surprisingly resistantto even shattering under a behemoth's fangs. And no, he didn't _really want to remember how he ended up fighting a freaking_ _ **behemoth**_. Kieran internally grimaced in remembrance, but quickly shook it off to pay for his items and head to Cid's garage…although, technically Cid has handed it over to Cindy now… _what_.

Time seemed to slow down to a snail's crawl as Kieran blinked in surprise seeing the _eerily_ familiar car being pushed into Hammerhead by an equally familiar group of four. A relatively young group of four guys, one thin yet muscled guy with bright blond, spiky hair wearing a punk-inspired outfit, an extremely muscular brunet looking like some kind of Rockstar, a formally dressed man with light brown hair, and lastly, a black-haired kid with aristocratic face that was _very_ familiar to him, having grown-up seeing his face along with his father's all over Insomnia. All of the group having the same skull symbol somewhere on their clothing. Kieran's mind stuttered to a stop, while his face went blank in shock, and two words resounded within his head.

 _Well…_ _ **Shit**_ _._

Kieran's eyes to darted from each of the newcomers, his face frozen and set in place while trying not to betray his shock over this…surprise. Trying to frantically control his spiraling thoughts, he breathed slowly under his breath as he tried figuring out when his plan went wrong. Kieran faux nonchalantly leaned against the side wall of Cid's garage, trying to still his thoughts as he watched the group's progress into Hammerhead.

 _Damnit…_

This is _**not**_ what he wanted to happen. It's only been a day after the announcement of the peace talks, how did they get here so damn fast? Kieran narrowed his eyes in thought, maybe he miscalculated somewhere along the line? From what he remembered, the timeline in the game plot never did have a set timeline, just vaguely measured time between the individual chapters. It **was** pretty vague for the exact time for **when** they left Insomnia. Kieran sighed, wondering what he should do now.

He had very little desire to interact with this group, no matter **how much** he adored their characters in the game. Maybe in the beginning he could have thought that, but, this is **his life now**. This isn't a game anymore, but his own life. Kieran didn't want to risk being entangled in that group knowing what's going to happen to them.

 _No matter how I may want to…_

Kieran scowled at his wistful thoughts, trying to mentally stamp them out. Using his back to push off the wall, he continued past the group, trying to find Cid so he could get his weapon checked out and finally **leave**. The risk of staying was far too high.

 _I won't let myself get attached. Again. I already cried enough over their fates even knowing it was a video game… I_ _ **won't**_ _allow myself to get attached to them as actual people._

That had been a _long_ lesson to learn. Learning to view the people here as actual _people_ and not fictional constructs. Originally, when he had been reborn, he had treated _everyone_ with the same kind of apathy until… _that time_. _That time_ had painfully forced him out of his denial of reality and made him realize that this was _it_. This wasn't some game that he could press pause, save, or reload.

 _For better or for worse. This was his life now._

* * *

So, yeah, my first ever fic is a FFXV SI/OC fic. Back when the game first came out, I actually took a while to actually play the game, but I found I enjoyed the game immensely. I adored our protagonists, the villains, the graphics, the cinematics, _everything_. I spent _so many hours_ just focusing on slowly going through the sidequests, hunts, and just trying to prolong everything for as long as possible before going on to the story. Although, my will was weak, and I soon sped through the story. Needless to say, the ending was absolutely tragic yet _oh so good_. Seriously, I still remember those moments when a _certain_ Chancellor infuriated into a rage. Specifically, during that whole jump-scare chapter. That's some kickass character design right there. The fact that I had such an emotional response to a character was great.

I won't deny I had some **issues** with how the story turned out though…but, it just goes to show how the game affected me.

Anyway, this isn't my rant about my feelings regarding FFXV, but it is seriously a great game. This fic is honestly a…tribute of sorts to how much I love the game. Before now, I had never gained the courage to actually write and post something. I've played with fic ideas before, but I've never actually taken that final step. Until now.

That's enough emotional crap from me. I hope you enjoy what I've written, but, I know I've got a loonnggg way to go to be a competent writer. Once again, any constructive criticism is welcome. And I look forward to hearing what everyone thinks.

-Riva


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Only my SI/OC and my changes and ideas regarding this fanfic belong to me, everything else belong to its creators.

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Final Fantasy XV: Twilight

Chapter Two

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 _With a fixed mindset, you believe you are who you are and you cannot change. This creates problems when you're challenged because anything that appears to be more than you can handle is bound to make you feel hopeless and overwhelmed._

 _~Travis Bradberry_

* * *

 _May 13th, M.E. 756_

 _I'm sure you're surprised, I only just finished writing that entry a few hours ago and yet here I am, writing yet again. Even I thought it would be_ _ **weeks**_ _before I tried writing in this thing again. Honestly, I'm_ _ **trying**_ _to really use this as a form of stress relief right now while I'm waiting for Cid to finish repairing my weapon. He said it'll take a few hours at the very least. According to Cid, during my last few fights I severely weakened the integrity of my weapon. After talking about it with him for a bit, we figured out that a previous modification had become worn down. It was originally supposed to ensure that it would increase my weapons resistance to attacking fir-based daemons._

 _Basically, the mod is supposed to absorb any heat emitted by a fire daemon's attacks and convert it into energy that makes my attacks stronger. I'm not a blacksmith or mechanic, so I can't explain it any better than that. Cid says he's going to need to adjust the strength of the mod so it won't fail again so soon. I only just finished gathering the materials for the mod a month ago after all. I'm surprised it wore out that quickly._

 _Now that I think about, my spear did feel uncomfortably warm during that fight with that Red Giant and Flans, especially when it freaking wailed on me. That was really close too. I nearly ended up getting chopped in half if I wasn't so fast. Ha… that fight was filled with so much dodging and close-calls. Thankfully, I managed to get out of it with some minor scratches and bruises._

 _Anyway, here I am, stuck playing the waiting game while Cid repairs my spear. I could go by the weapon stall and get a replacement spear, but I don't think that would work. I've had this spear since I was fifteen and it would feel uncomfortable trying to get used to a new weapon. It would likely lead to me making mistakes and possibly getting myself killed, after all I've grown used to taking advantage of the benefits the mods have given me. Plus, it's Insomnian technology and a lot more durable than anything else out there._

 _Say what you will about Insomnia, but, they definitely take their weapon technology seriously. I've never seen any weapons from anywhere else being better than Insomnia. Must come from having the royal bloodline magic involving weapons. And being able to gift their magic onto their attendants and soldiers. Although, the Kingsglaive really makes me think of a mix of ninja, black ops, and shock troops. I mean, sure, they're clearly mainly used as the first line of defense in protecting Insomnia, but, they're clearly well-trained in other matters as well. Rather impressive really._

 _Anyway, I've been rambling about that for enough. I'm really concerned about wasting all of this daylight. I only have a specific timeframe to find that dualhorn and I'm being restrained because I need my weapon repaired. And wasting daylight while I'm at it. There's isn't much I can do about it, except wait, but, it's still frustrating._

… _I'm going to miss my chance with that dualhorn, aren't I? I thought it would be quick having Cid check my weapon over and be off in maybe_ _ **fifteen**_ _minutes. I sorely underestimated the damage it seems. I don't know when specifically, I do know in the game that Cindy sends the four on that hunt to eliminate some creatures and track down Dave, but it should be soon. I need to get going soon, but it's still going to be a while before it's finished being repaired._

 _Ugghh. Damnit it all._

 _This is_ _ **not**_ _how I expected my day to go. I thought, oh hey, this will be just like any other day of research. No worries~. How wrong I was. I'm really starting to wonder if their_ _arrival is some sort of bad omen. Or maybe Fate really does hate me that much? Given how the Six are so damn focused on Noctis, I'm really starting to believe that's the case. I can't believe I wasted all that time trying to avoid all of them and it all ended up being for nothing. My plans literally went down in flames._

 _Maybe I'm being too worried over nothing? I mean, looking at me, I'm just some quiet guy hanging around Cid's garage waiting for something to get his weapon repaired. At best, they'll just think I'm some hunter, no one special to get concerned about. Hunters are a dime a dozen after all. Hunters with damaged weapons even more so. Then there's the problem with how I stared at them. I don't think they noticed me staring, but, knowing my luck…_

 _ **Shit**_ _…_

 _Well, maybe they'll just assume I was surprised to see newcomers, especially such fancily dressed ones? And having that high-tech city car, well, it'll be no surprise I was curious, right? I hope so. Please, by the_ _ **Six**_ _, don't let them try and talk to me. I really can't deal with this right now. I can't believe I'm in this situation…_

 _Fuck. Seriously, what do I do? I don't want to get involved with them. After all, familiarity either can breed contempt or friendship. Or however that saying is supposed to go. Maybe if I just act coldly towards them like I'm an utter asshole? Like, how I acted with my former schoolmates? It was always handy in getting people to back off. Not that it ever worked on Cindy, but still…_

 _It_ _ **could**_ _work._

 _Ah, I'm going to feel so_ _ **bad**_ _about this later. I hate acting like a jerk to people who don't deserve it and from what I remember, Noctis and the others were always so nice to people, especially given how often that Noctis got suckered into so many side-quests. I admit, I remember laughing whenever Sania bulldozed over Noctis to get him to help her with her research and Noctis' utter inability to say no. They definitely don't deserve my vitriol, no matter how fake it may be, but I don't see how I could get them to back off otherwise._

 _I'm sure you're all wondering why I'm so worried all get attached and why I consider it such a problem. Thing is, when I get attached I get_ _ **attached**_ _. It's all or nothing for me. And knowing their eventual fates…well, is it really that surprising I want to avoid that kind of emotional pain? I've already lost my entire life last time and I stand to lose my_ _ **home**_ _, Insomnia, to those damn Imperials, knowing there isn't a_ _ **damn**_ _thing I can about it. Is it really any wonder why I'm so determined to stay out of things?_

 _I'm just_ _ **done**_ _._

 _I don't want to lose anything else that I care about. I may have accepted that this is my life now, but, that doesn't mean I'm about to let anyone in so easily. And I_ _ **don't**_ _want to get involved with the guys that caused me actual emotional pain the first time around. It's amazing how people can get so attached to video game characters, isn't it? I guess it goes to how good the creators were._

 _And adding to the fact that I can get sensitive and emotional over things when provoked in the right fashion. I'm not ashamed to admit that I cry, but, it_ _ **is**_ _embarrassing that people see me looking so weak._

… _Hm? Cindy is calling me over, I wonder what she wants? And it looks like I'm going to be introduced to Noctis, Prompto, Ignis, and Gladio for the first time. Please let this not end badly._

 _-Kieran_

* * *

Kieran set his face into his default expression of disinterest, trying to keep his unease from showing in his face, as he walked over to Cindy after seeing her wave for him to come over. Cindy, as always, was the same perky, sweet blonde girl he remembered meeting all of those years ago when he first left Insomnia. It was really surprising at the time, she had somehow through all of his walls, despite how he had fought against her attempts and how snarly he had gotten with her, she had still continued to try and get to know him.

Surprisingly, she didn't seem disappointed that Kieran was really, at his core, a seriously socially awkward and shy guy, who focuses on his interests to curb his loneliness. Even now, Kieran still isn't sure what to think about that. He had been sure he would have scared her off eventually. And yet, here they are, still friends for about… six years now? He had left Insomnia and ended up in Hammerhead shortly after when he had recently turned fifteen. Although, the only reason he had been allowed to leave was because he had blown through his schooling, internship, and finished early, as well as going through the whole emancipation process to be allowed to live on his own, with occasional checks with Insomnian government officials to make sure he was doing alright.

Anyway, it was still surprising, years later, that she had shown him complete acceptance, even if she thought his ways of thinking were a bit odd and considered him incompetent in taking care of himself. Not trying to change him, merely accepting as he _was_. Even not caring that he wasn't exactly socially acceptable by society's standards, meaning he had a horrible tendency of being unable to understand social cues and tends to speak far too bluntly. He's gotten better at pretending to understand social interaction though, so he wasn't as bad as he was at fifteen. You would _think_ after living through two lives that he would be more socially competent, not _less_.

Regardless, for her acceptance of him, Kieran forever holds a soft spot for her, no matter that he learned, early on in their friendship, how emotionally manipulative she could be. In a good way, she has the best intentions, but, that doesn't mean her sheer _mastery_ of getting people to do what she wants wasn't _scary as_ _ **fuck**_. Seriously, Cindy is a freaking expert at getting you to do things for her and you're happy doing it. Thankfully, she doesn't _usually_ try and make him do things he doesn't want to do.

Normally, she just asks him to pick up or drop off deliveries, hunting down pests being a bother in the area, or hunting down materials for the garage. Nothing too strenuous, but, she does tend to trick him into attending social gatherings for hunters under false pretenses. It's…fun, every once in a while anyway, but Kieran isn't exactly the social butterfly type, he'll leave that stuff to her.

Although, he was seriously _not_ liking that glint in her eyes right now…

Kieran stopped right next to Cindy, sending the four Insomnians a brief disinterested glance before turning his attention completely to Cindy. Once again, noting the glint in eyes, which usually meant he was about to do something he wouldn't like. Strangely enough, she only tends to get that glint in her eye when she tries to get him to talk to people.

Kieran glanced at her warily and spoke carefully. "You called, Cindy? Was there something you needed me for?"

Cindy grinned at him brightly, immediately making him even more suspicious, and chirped in that accent eerily reminiscent of a Southern American. "Oh Kieran! You finally got over here, took your sweet time. But, as it happens, I got a lil' favor to ask you. Y'see, Paw-paw wanted to teach these boys here a lesson and wants them to take care of some pests, but, I'd feel just rotten if they got hurt because they didn't know what they're doing and I thought maybe you could go with them and help them out?"

Kieran blinked then narrowed his eyes as crossed his arms irritably, playing dumb about his knowledge of the situation while hiding his panic. Of _course_ , Cindy would try and do this. Kieran _knew_ Cindy, and she knew him. She could be rather deceptive under all that sweet southern charm and knew _exactly_ how to twist him around to get what she wants. She certainly has had plenty of practice over the years. So, trying to get him to socialize with some newcomers, while at the same time, ensuring said newcomers don't get themselves hurt or killed.

Still, he wasn't exactly fond of her plan, seeing as it was the direct opposite of his own plan in avoiding them. Although, he has to wonder if she knew that he wanted to avoid them? Cindy has always been eerily perceptive about people and a good judge of character. And she has always had a way of knowing exactly he was thinking.

Kieran raises an eyebrow and asks disbelievingly. "And why would _Cid_ be wanting to teach these city boys a lesson? Did they not have enough money to pay for repairs or something? If that's the case, then why'd he agree to repair their car in the first place?"

Even with years with playing ignorant on specific knowledge he had no basis knowing, Kieran was still paranoid about accidentally slipping up, so he tended to choose his words with care. It would easy to slip and say something that is obviously beyond his scope of knowledge, which would gain their attention. And he would rather _not_ get into that kind of situation.

Cindy laughed cheerily and shook her head. "Oh no, you got it all wrong, sweetie. They paid for the repairs. Paw-paw's in the garage repairing the old girl right now, but he figured that they could help out a bit and I could pay them for their services. They're strapped a bit for cash now, ya see?"

Kieran nodded in understanding, but scowled irately as he propped his hand on his hip. "I get it, but what good does it do me to look out for a bunch of rookie hunters while I'm waiting to get my weapon repaired? And even if I _did_ want to help them out, you know I was planning on going out and finding my target soon. In short, I'm going to have to decline."

Assured that Cindy wouldn't take his harsh words seriously, he was unreserved in his harsh words about the quartet. After all, Cindy had told him he resembled a rather agitated kitten with his fur all puffed up when irate. He was hoping his cold demeanor would put them off and make them think twice. Kieran rather determinedly didn't look over at the group and stared at Cindy, awaiting her response. He knew if he looked over and saw the reactions to his words, he would capitulate so fast it wouldn't even be _funny_. He _hated_ hurting people's feelings. Even those he didn't know too well.

Cindy blinked surprised, but snickered soon after and patted him on the shoulder fondly. "Aww, c'mon, I'm sure it won't be _that_ bad. There's no need to be such a grumpy sourpuss. You keep frowning that much and your face'll get stuck that way."

Cindy gestured towards the foursome and further explained, obviously hoping to convince him. "Besides, they say they already have weapons and know how to fight. You'll just need to teach them how to the fight the ornery varmints around here. Besides, you still have your back-up knives, don't cha? I'm sure you'll able to figure something out between you five."

Kieran shook his head in refusal and harshly objected. "It doesn't matter if they have fighting experience or not. I have no interest in teaming up with a group. You know I prefer to hunt on my own. I have never worked in a group before, so, we would need to learn more about each other before we would be able to work together in a competent manner."

Kieran looked Cindy in the eyes and said firmly, hoping to make her see reason. "Besides, a group will just lead to more complications, especially if we happen upon an enemy we can't handle while so obviously disorganized."

Much to Kieran's dismay, Cindy gazed soulfully at him and pleaded softly. "I know you aren't exactly comfortable with groups, but, can't you just make an exception, just this once? Kieran, you're the most knowledgeable about all those daemons, monsters, and other nasties. Even if they run into a new enemy, I'm sure you'll come up with a plan. You're the best choice. Please, for _me_ , Kieran?"

Cindy smiled as she looked at him hopefully, looking him in the eye as they were the same height. Kieran closed his eyes and cursed himself internally before opening them again. As always, Cindy just has this way of emotionally manipulating a person so smoothly you don't even notice it. And she knows _exactly_ which buttons to push to make you agree.

Especially given the fact that she _knows_ Kieran likes helping whenever he can, an absolute sucker for people in trouble, making him an easy mark for any salesman. Thankfully, his taciturn demeanor and blunt way of speaking makes them back off quickly. That said, his helpfulness also had the unexpected side effect of making people more friendly towards him.

But, this is a totally different thing! The quartet don't need his help, they'll do fine on their own… at least they did in the game. What if something went on behind the scenes that he didn't know about? With video games, you can just reload and try again, no consequences whatsoever. What if something happens they aren't prepared for?

… _ **Damnit**_.

 _Now I'm_ _ **worried**_ _._

Kieran sighed resignedly and nodded in agreement. "Alright, Cindy, you've convinced me. But, I'll only help them out this _once_. This will be only a one-time thing. And don't expect me to be happy about it."

Cindy beamed at him happily and agreed. "That's fine. I'm sure they'll be in good hands with you, even if it's only for a little while."

Kieran turned towards the group, challengingly raising his eyebrow while asking. "Assuming, of course, that you all have no objections to this _arrangement_?" After drawling out the last word sarcastically, he inwardly hoped that was indeed the case, as he patiently waited for their response.

Noctis and Prompto looked surprised by Kieran suddenly turning and addressing them, rather resembling a pair of chocobo chicks startled by something, as they glanced at each other questioningly. While Gladio looked amused by Kieran's taunt.

Ignis met his eyes levelly as he spoke. "Of course, we would be glad of any assistance in such an unknown and dangerous area to us. This is our first time out of the Crown City after all. We will do our best to listen to your advice and I hope we can end our arrangement on in a pleasant manner."

Ignis stepped up and offered his hand in a clear offer to shake hands and as a physical confirmation of their temporary alliance. After a second of hesitation, Kieran accepted his offer and nodded his agreement. "I suppose…I _was_ a bit too quick to judge you all, but, being a hunter isn't a game and I wanted to be sure about your _resolution_. Hunting isn't for the faint-hearted, after all. As long as you're willing to listen to what I say, we should get along fine."

Kieran was only half-lying, it was true that some people just weren't cut out for hunting and often made mistakes that other hunters had to cover for their errors, which often lead to hunter deaths that could have been avoided.

As he watched their reactions closely, Prompto and Noctis looking surprised by his trickery, Ignis and Gladio nodded in understanding and approval respectively, shortly after, Ignis spoke up. "As we are going to be working together, I suppose introductions are in order. I am Ignis. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Gladio smirked and followed Ignis shortly after in the introductions, waving cheerily. "The name is Gladiolus, but, you can call me Gladio. Nice to meet ya, kid."

Kieran stared at him blandly, internally amused by Gladio calling him 'kid' given his actual mental age of forty-six, and spoke. "Likewise, it is nice to meet you as well… Gladio, Ignis." Although, Kieran was a bit disbelieving at the warm reception, given his earlier words.

Prompto bounced up closer to Kieran and smiled brightly. "Hi, the name's Prompto and the sulky guy next to me is my best bud, Noctis." As Prompto spoke, he gestured towards Noctis for a moment, causing Kieran to flick his gaze over there momentarily, Noctis staring at him before nodding in confirmation. Prompto and Noctis acting similarly to Gladio and Ignis, accepting words as truth, as well as showing no offense to Kieran for his harsh words earlier and the fact he blatantly ignored them earlier while speaking with Cindy right in front of them.

Kieran stared at them, feeling off-balance and incredulous at their welcome. But, eventually he relented and returned the favor. "…I'm sure you already know my name from Cindy, but, for politeness's sake, you can call me Kieran. It's nice to meet you as well, Prompto, Noctis."

Kieran vaguely registered Cindy giggling at his awkwardness, only just remembering she had still been there, having been focused on his introductions with the foursome and analyzing their reactions. Although, Ignis was incredibly difficult to read.

He then shifted slightly and nodded his head over to the diner. "We'll need to check with Takka and grab the actual bounty for dealing with these pests. Even if Cindy is willing to pay you all a bit for your services, it would be good to get some extra gil, just in case you need it…yes, Prompto?"

Prompto laughed sheepishly and spoke. "Uh, sorry for interrupting, but, why would we need to see a restaurant owner about a bounty?"

Kieran smiled slightly at the question and answered. "That's actually a good question, Prompto. Truth is, all owners of restaurants, diners, and other eateries are what are referred as 'tipsters'. Tipsters gather information for hunters on the location of various bounties and label them per their difficulty. Some bounties are more dangerous than others and require a higher hunt rank. Each bounty offers different rewards and amounts of gil depending on their difficulty."

Kieran took a deep breath, exhaled, and continued. "The ranking system was eventually developed because too many cocky hunters tried taking on bounties far above their skill level and died. Rather brutally. After all, some bounties are for specific daemons which can only be found during nighttime and so the hunter needs to be skilled enough to avoid other daemons to track down their target while being strong enough to take it down. Monster and daemon types have their own specific resistances, immunities, and unique abilities after all. Some extremely debilitating if you aren't prepared for it."

Seeing the understanding dawning in their eyes, Kieran continued with his explanation. "Tipsters can also point you in the different of interesting spots that they've heard about. Such as resources points for different ingredients for food or treasure spots that they have heard about, but are too dangerous for anyone except hunters to travel to. In short, tipsters are an important source used by hunters all the time. The hunter association would give you a more detailed explanation of how it works, but, that is basically how it is."

Noctis hesitated slightly, but asked. "So, hunters are like the Crownsguard and Kingsglaive? Eliminating threats before they grow too strong and hurt many people?"

Kieran nodded and clarified further. "The only difference being that the hunters are a civilian-run organization. Very few have formal self-defense training and have learned how to fight through trial-and-error. It works for them."

Prompto interjected suddenly and asked. "Uh, 'them'? You speak as though you aren't a hunter?"

Cindy giggled in amusement as Kieran grinned slightly at how Prompto caught that and answered. "I am only a hunter by a technicality. My true job is researching the different types of creatures, monsters, and daemons. Discovering every single weakness, resistance, immunity, unique ability, and even their differences when a species starts to mutate, is my life's work. I hunt down bounties to observe and study them."

Prompto, Gladio, Noctis, and Ignis looked shocked by his answer, Noctis recovered first and demanded. "But, if you're a researcher, then isn't that dangerous if you have minimal combat training! You could get hurt or killed!"

Cindy gave him a pointed _I told you_ look in response and Kieran pointedly ignored her to answer. "I already _have_. Gotten hurt that is."

The quartet looked at him incredulously, obviously questioning his sanity. Kieran rolled his eyes and spoke dryly. "Look, in case you hadn't noticed, daemons and monsters are getting more unpredictable by the day. Every day, or night, as the case may be, you hear of them acting outside their usual patterns, developing mutations, and reacting in unusual aggression. That's why it's so _necessary_ to research them and help hunters deal with these sudden mutations and protect the civilian populace. Besides, I got enough combat training over the years to be able to handle myself against them."

Noctis responded curiously. "If that's the case, why don't you hire a hunter and wait for him to get back to you for your research material?"

Kieran shook his head, feeling mildly irritated at Noctis' words and oddly offended when he belatedly noticed Prompto nodding in agreement and Ignis and Gladio's faint skepticism. Kieran tried pushing back his irritation and said. "That's _because_ I prefer doing it myself. It isn't that I don't trust the hunters, but this is _my_ research and as such, _my responsibility_. I'd rather risk my own life to gain knowledge, then another's life."

Noctis shook his head in disbelief. "But, aren't you just satisfying your own curiosity by placing your life in danger?"

… _What._

…

… _ **Are you**_ _f_ _ **ucking kidding me right now?!**_

Kieran stared at Noctis in clear disbelief and swore a blue streak instead his mind, furious at Noctis for downplaying his reasons for research as _mere curiosity_.

 _Calm Down, Kieran. He doesn't understand and is only going off the stuff he's likely learned from Cindy and my own vague admission._

Even telling himself that, Kieran still felt furious and it likely showed in his eyes, given how surprised Noctis looked. Vaguely, Kieran noticed Cindy looked anxious and ready to intervene, along with the three boys, and forced his next words out through clenched teeth.

"It isn't _mere curiosity_ that I'm doing this for. I'm doing this for all the people out there that have _no_ _idea_ how to get avoid the danger. I'm doing this to help hunters gain the edge they _need_. I'm doing this so the Kingsglaive can better _defend Insomnia_. This _information_ can potentially save many lives as possible. And I'm not about to sit pretty on my _ass_ while others risk their _lives_ for _what I need to know_."

Kieran glared fiercely at Noctis, who stared at him, clearly surprised and at a loss for words. Kieran belatedly noticed his breathing was harsh and his body was shaking with rage, while vaguely noting how shocked the others looked at him for losing it, especially Cindy.

Feeling a familiar burn in his eyes, Kieran's lips trembled with the effort it took not to cry, trying not think about _past failures_.

 _ **Nonononono**_ _._ _ **Don'tthinkaboutit.**_

Kieran internally forced down the memories, and tried to calm himself as he spoke. "If I'm not willing to risk my own life getting the results I need, then what the _hell_ does that tell you about me? I _need_ the information I search for to hunters _survive_ past their first battle. I take my work very _seriously_. I'm not about to toss my _life_ aside on some _whim_. _That's all_."

…

… _I just vented my feelings at a_ _ **stranger**_ _._

Kieran stilled at just realizing what he had said and an embarrassed flush crawled on his face and neck as he looked away, having not meant to lose it like that. He hadn't meant to explain why he had kept such strong feelings about why he researched until Noctis confronted him like that. He shifted slightly and started nervously tugging at the ends of his hair, struggling with his words for a bit. And horribly confused over how Noctis managed to elicit such a response from him.

Kieran drew in a shaky breath and spoke, looking Noctis in the eye, no matter how much it terrified him to do so. "…I-I…look, I'm s-sorry. I overreacted a bit there, but… I _refuse_ to let someone do my dirty work, when I'm perfectly capable of doing it by myself. That's all."

Noctis blinked, looking surprised, but quickly accepted his words. "Hey, uh, that's okay. Sorry for poking at such a sore spot for you. I'm sure you have your reasons for doing what you do."

Kieran nodded jerkily in response, internally wincing at the awkward silence filling the air and instant mortification filled him, feeling horrified over the likeliness that the entirety of Hammerhead had likely heard him.

… _Can I die now?_

Cindy suddenly started laughing, breaking the awkward atmosphere, and slapped his back caused his him to jerk and snap his head to the side and look at her. Cindy grinned at him as she jerked her thumb in his direction. "See, the ol' sourpuss isn't so bad once you get used to him. Still, gotta say Noctis, haven't seen Kieran react like that since he argued with Paw-paw that one time. Now _that_ , was a sight to see. Anyway, as y'all can see, Kieran here is a real softie at heart, so don't be taking anything nasty he says to heart. He's just a bit awkward is all. He may be a bit harsh at times, but he won't be steering you wrong or lettin' you get hurt needlessly."

Kieran groaned softly, covering the visible right side of his face in embarrassment, still feeling raw over his rage letting loose. "… _Cindy_ , **enough**."

Cindy continued speaking to the quartet, ignoring his protest. "Kieran has been huntin' for six years now, so he knows all the ins and outs, so be sure to play close attention to what he says, ya hear? But, I'm glad y'all will be with him cuz he needs somebody to look out for him and make sure he doesn't get hurt. He has the absolute _worst luck_ of any hunter I've ever seen and tends to get wrapped up in some pretty bad messes. He's come back real hurt more than once and, well, we're all real concerned he may not come back one of these days."

Still covering his face shyly, Kieran hears murmurs of agreement and gnaws his lip nervously, thinking about what he should do. Cindy's concern for his wellbeing was heart-warming as always, even if he's kind of miffed by her lack of faith in him. She always worries about his injuries whenever he comes back with so much as a scratch. Finally, he prepared himself and uncovered his face to finally greet reality after ignoring it for a few minutes.

Kieran glanced at Cindy and spoke softly. "I appreciate your concern, Cindy, but, you know I can take care of myself."

Cindy looked back at him and said dryly. "Some days, I'm not so sure about that, sweetie."

Kieran huffed irritably and looked away, muttering under his breath barely audible, so the quartet wouldn't hear. "And some days, I don't understand how you can care about and befriend someone like me."

Cindy has _always_ been a good friend, no matter how embarrassing she is at showing it.

Kieran sighed, locking away those thoughts for now, and focused on the task at hand, looking to the foursome. "Given how badly I reacted just now, are you certain you still want me as your guide?" Kieran hopes that was the case, but, was rather resigned to his fate that he'd be around them for a while.

His hopes were dashed when Noctis spoke up and answered, grinning teasingly. "Yes, if anything, your _reaction_ just proved you're more than just some haughty hunter and we'd like you to be our guide." Ignis, Gladio, and Prompto agreed and putting in their two cents.

Kieran reluctantly snickered, amused by the teasing Noctis had given him, still worried, but pushing it back to reply. "Well then, let's get back on track then, shall we?"

Kieran stepped forward and once again, gestured at Takka's diner, and walked off while trusting they would follow him. He vaguely noted a quiet conversation going on behind his back with the quartet, but didn't pay too much attention to it. Most likely them debating his mental stability.

 _Well, here it goes. Here's to hoping Cindy's scheme isn't about to blow up in my face._

Although, Kieran wasn't holding onto any particularly high hopes about that given his luck. At least he got out of that situation with minimal embarrassment, especially given how spectacularly he had blown up at Noctis. Hopefully, their momentary partnership will end on a pleasant note and lead to them forgetting about him soon enough.

…

 _Yeah… I wouldn't count on it._

 _I can still_ _ **dream**_ _though…_

* * *

Kieran drummed his fingers patiently on the counter while leaning against it, waiting for Takka to finish up so they could speak with him. Having arrived back during the breakfast rush, they had to wait until the worst of it has to pass, which gave Kieran plenty of time to calm down and think about all that had happened earlier. Even if he had to play the guide for them, there's still a silver lining in this situation. He'll definitely be able to get to that mutated dualhorn in time and be able to observe and grab some research samples from it. Still, it's best to finish this up as quickly as possible to prevent…unforeseen complications.

Kieran exhaled tiredly, still feeling conflicted, but, reluctantly accepting the current circumstances. Well, there's not much he can do about it right now. He just needs to hold on long enough to finish those the arrangement and get back to what he was doing. The Six willing, he'd get out this with minimal trouble. Kieran internally scoffed at his thoughts.

Yeah right, like I'd ever be _that_ lucky.

As he turned around to lean his back against the counter and put his arms behind him, Kieran scanned the diner, curious as to what the foursome were up to. Ignis seemed to be looking at some posters depicting some sort of red jelly and arguing with Noctis about it, to his amusement, Noctis seemed rather repelled about the topic. Gladio and Prompto similarly seemed to be arguing about… the edibility of behemoth meat? Kieran mentally shrugged, well, whatever floats their boat.

Behemoth meat is rather tasty, but so damn hard to get ahold of due to how _strong_ the damn things are. Seriously, you'd need an entire team of hunters just to down one, never mind the effort required to kill it.

 _Heavy risk, but the prize~_

Kieran snickered at his thoughts, kind of surprised he still remembered that. As the years went by, he found his memories growing a little duller. He still remembers most of his life, but, he was definitely forgetting things. Well, it's only to be expected that his memories of life here would eventually replace his old ones. Still, that doesn't mean he wants to forget them, they've made him _who_ he was today after all.

Kieran glanced back and saw that Takka was just finishing up and looked back to the foursome, only to see they realized the same thing and moved towards the counter.

As Takka moved back to counter, Kieran reversed his position so he was facing him and greeted him. Noting the man's obvious exhaustion. "It's been getting a bit busy here, hasn't it?"

Takka laughed and waved him off his concern. "Just a lot of people going back to Insomnia for the upcoming peace talks. I'm not surprised, it's a big thing going on right now. But, that's not what you really came to talk to me about, now is it?"

Kieran huffed a laugh and smirked at his teasing. "No, it isn't. I'm just taking these boys out hunting and to get a feel for what hunting is like. Cindy told me that Cid has them set on eliminating some pests? So, there has to be a bounty out for them and thought we should grab it so they could get the reward as well."

Takka grinned and said jokingly. "Cindy decided you needed to do some socializing? You'd never take out a group for anything less. But, it's nice to meet you boys, been a while since we got city folk from Insomnia."

Vaguely noting how the quartet was replying in their own greetings and watching their interaction, Kieran nodded and spoke. "So, what is this bounty about? It can't be too serious if Cid thinks a few newbies can handle it?"

Takka nodded, reached in his pockets to grab some papers and handed them over. "Nah, just some reapertails causing a bit of trouble for travelers. Just a bit to the north-east of here, word is it looks they're several groups of them settling down to build a nests out there. They're real close."

Kieran hummed absent-mindedly while he read the information, noting the tips on where they were last seen. "A bit of a pest control job then. That won't take long. The only trouble will be finding where exactly they are nested, but, north-east already gives me a general idea of where they have nested. There's only so many places they could be with the sabertusks breeding like crazy."

Prompto piped up curiously. "Are sabertusks that dangerous? And what are sabertusks and reapertails?"

Kieran turned to see Prompto, Ignis, Gladio, and Noctis looking at him curiously, obviously waiting for an explanation. Kieran clicked his tongue, wondering where he should start. Well, best start with Prompto's first question. "No, sabertusks aren't dangerous, except to the unwary. Reapertails are creatures that resemble over-sized scorpions. It's believed that a variant mutated a long time ago and evolved to adjust to the environment and the area's predators. As such, a reapertail's poison is extremely potent, more so than their small cousins, and can easily kill an unaware hunter."

At that Kieran paused to ensure they were understand and to his amusement, Noctis and Prompto looked a bit disturbed by the thought of fighting over-sized scorpions, while Ignis and Gladio nodded in understanding of his advice. Kieran spoke up and further explained. "But, an antidote can easily reverse the effects. That said, they have obvious weak spots and are easy to kill once you've fought them a few times. Basically, avoid the barb and strike fast and hard. As I said, reapertails are only dangerous to the unaware. so long as you know how to handle them and eliminate them quickly, they won't be a problem."

Kieran hummed in thought and pondered aloud. "Still, I'm surprised Cid gave you all such an easy task. But, then again, you _are_ newbies at this. It'll be an easy enough hunt and give you a feel for what it's like. Plus, reapertails do have a tendency to pop out from under the sand. They're very good burrowers and like to surprise their prey that way by skewering them."

Noctis and Prompto had the most hilarious mix of wounded pride, relief, and disgust that Kieran had ever seen in his life, while Gladio and Ignis looked intrigued and fascinated respectively, causing him to laugh lowly. He smiled slightly and reassured them. "Don't worry, I always carry several types of potions with me, so even if you are poisoned, you won't stay that way for long."

Prompto glanced at Kieran worriedly and asked. "But, what about sabertusks? Are we going to run into them as well?"

Kieran sighed amused at the blond's clear worry and answered. "That's most likely, they tend to breed fast. Sabertusks are black, extremely skinny creatures with sharp tusks and have a tendency to rip your throat out if you get knocked to the ground. And are most well-known for killing their prey by skewering them with their tusks. In which case, flip them off you as fast as you can. They work in groups, like wolves. They're known to be extremely fast and aggressive, but are easy to kill if you hit the right spot, but decapitation is usually the way to go. Believe me, you know them when you see them."

Kieran turned back towards Takka and said. "Anyway, we need to get going and not waste any more time, thanks for the information, Takka."

Takka shook his head and said. "No, thank you, these beasts have been causing all manner of trouble for my customers. I'm glad to know someone is taking care of it. I know Dave already left to handle multiple nests of sabertusks and dualhorns nearby so we couldn't ask him."

Kieran nodded in understanding and looked to the quartet. "Alright, let's get going. As you no doubt heard, our first target is to the north-east of here. Near that area is a prime spot for a reapertail nest and other nasties, so, keep your guard up. Most creatures won't attack you in this region unless you get too close, but sabertusks will attack _anything_ living. Understand?"

Ignis and Gladio nodded in understanding, but, Noctis and Prompto still looked a bit unsure, while trying not to seem as such, Prompto more so than Noctis. Kieran walked over and patted Prompto's shoulder comfortingly and spoke reassuringly. "I won't say don't worry, because you need to keep your guard up out there, but, once you get used to things out here, you'll find that they're easier to deal with once you know what expect."

Prompto blinked at him in surprised and smiled shakily. "Yeah, I know, this is hunting business is just really new to me."

Kieran nodded and after readjusting his bag, he turned in the direction of the door and spoke over his shoulder. "Let's get going, we're wasting daylight!" Hearing the four different types of footsteps following him, he prayed internally, hoping that this wouldn't go badly. Kieran wasn't exactly hopeful his prayers would be answered, but found himself hoping nonetheless.

 _Whatever happens will happen, but I'll try and make the best of it._

* * *

Kieran…you are seriously complicated. Which makes you human. T.T I'm your creator and I'm not quite sure I fully understand you. Anyway, let me know what you think. What do you think I can improve on? Notice any errors? Anything you liked?

Once again, I must apologize for the false alarm I gave any followers of mine. I'm sorry.

So, uh, read and review?

-Riva


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Only my SI/OC and my changes and ideas regarding this fanfic belong to me, everything else belong to its creators.

* * *

Final Fantasy XV: Twilight

Chapter Three

* * *

 _Anger is a manifestation of a deeper issue... and that, for me, is based on insecurity, self-esteem and loneliness._

~ _Naomi Campbell_

* * *

 _May 13th, M.E. 756_

The familiar warmth of the Leide desert curled comfortingly through the air as Kieran walked to his destination with his newfound _companions_. He lazily listened to Prompto's complaints about the heat as he soaked up the sunlight beating down on them, feeling it chase away the residual chill he felt from his earlier uneasiness regarding his alliance with the foursome.

Honestly, he still wasn't sure what to think about all _this_.

 _This,_ being the circumstances he now found himself in as the guide for a royal entourage. Seriously, he wasn't expecting that when he woke up this morning. Still, he could only make the best of it while it lasts and, hopefully, he would able to move on with his life afterwards. Kieran had little desire to get entangled within the upcoming events. It was bad enough that he was risking getting attached to them, getting accidentally thrown into their future quest to reclaim Insomnia would be even worse.

Kieran sighed wearily as he continued to keep his guard up and listened carefully for the telltale sounds of dangerous creatures, as well as scanning the area for their targets. It wasn't a particularly dangerous area, but it never hurt to be too careful, so he stretched out his Intuition as well, feeling for nearby danger.

Kieran noted the familiar bestial auras of the regular wildlife, but the reapertails they were looking for were still too far off. That said, he felt the distinct presence of sabertusks were going in and out of his range, which concerned him a bit. He was confident enough in his Intuition and he wasn't too worried about being caught off-guard, but it would be careless to let his guard down just because he was feeling far too assured in his abilities.

The wasteland was dangerous enough with its stifling heat that could easily kill the unprepared, no need to tempt fate by falling into a false sense of security and ignoring the collection of dangerous beasts that prowled around in both day and night. Besides that, the creatures weren't the only things they needed to worry about. The appearance of magitek infantry, as well as regular Niflheim soldiers, were steadily increasing within the area, as well as various checkpoints that have caused massive inconvenience for everyone. It was enough to make any Lucian paranoid.

Kieran had heard enough gossip and speculation about it, while traveling all over the country, to know that a great deal of Lucians were worried about Lucis being conquered, but only a small minority were still making a fuss about it. Many still felt that they should continue fighting back against the Empire and that the so-called 'peace treaty' was merely a fallacy.

Others were hopeful that there would no longer be war between the Empire and Lucis. And that peace would finally reign. Kieran considered those types of people optimistically naive at best, and painfully deluded at worst. Given Emperor Aldercapt's change of rule all those years ago, he doubted that the Emperor had a sudden change of heart and everything would be all sunshine and rainbows. And having the foreknowledge about Niflheim's true intentions, he knew that the pessimists were right.

 _But… it wasn't like anyone could do anything about it, now could they?_

Even knowing that the Empire intended on invading Insomnia and conquering it, Kieran just couldn't do anything about it. He was just _one_ person. How could he possibly change things by himself? If he told anyone what was going to happen, they'd call him a crackpot or chuck him in the loony bin. He couldn't hope to make _any_ kind of significant difference by himself. He could only continue to pass along his research and _hope_ his knowledge could save lives and gave the Kingsglaive and Crownsguard the _slightest_ edge against the invasion.

Kieran sighed again, feeling the familiar mix of helplessness and self-hatred rolling around in his head. His face quickly became set in forced blankness, as to not give away his emotions to his companions. He hadn't wanted to admit it, even into a freaking inanimate object like his diary. But, he felt so _guilty_ being unable to do _anything_. He wanted so badly to stop, or at the very least, lessen the effects of the invasion.

He _hated_ it.

What _use_ was his foreknowledge if he couldn't even use it to help people?!

What reason does he even exist? _Why_ was he reborn if he couldn't use that knowledge to help people? Sure, he's helped out the hunters and random civilians with his knowledge, but he still feels so helpless, knowing what is to come. He hated that his cowardice has stopped him from taking that step. What if they had _believed him_? Would they have been better prepared for the invasion? Would some have survived, that hadn't in the game and film? Had he…

 _Essentially killed all those people by not being_ _**brave enough**_ _to make changes?_

Kieran honestly hated himself for that. He regretted that his indecision would be responsible for all those deaths. He regretted he hadn't done _more_. He _knew_ he should have pushed himself further, then maybe… just _maybe_. Even now, knowing it was too late to even _try, he still wanted to help._

But… It was too late now.

It was no use mourning what ifs and maybes, he could only focus on the now and possibly make a difference with his research. All he could do… was stand by as a spectator, watch the unfolding events, and _pray_ that things would turn out alright in the end. Pray that everything would be alright in the end and focus on what he _could_ do and not what he _wanted_ to do. He would continue to provide the hunters and civilians with information, do his best to take out problematic bounties, and all that he could do for then.

Kieran closed his eyes as he gathered and firmed his resolve, as he opened his eyes again. He _refused_ to fail this. If he couldn't succeed in protecting what little he could, what use was he? He _refused_ to fail Cindy, Cid, Dave, and everyone else by failing in such a simple task.

 _He couldn't_ _fail._

 _He_ _ **refused**_ _._

Even if he could only help a little by providing the Chosen King and his guards the knowledge they needed to get started, survive, and continue on, Kieran would consider it a success. They were an inexperienced bunch, with little knowledge of the outside world beyond Insomnia. Even if they _could_ fight. All the combat training and the knowledge to prepare pales in comparison to actual experience. The experience he fully intended on giving them so they could _thrive_. And not just survive.

 _Although, I suppose I was jumping the gun a bit._

Kieran grinned mentally, amused by his impatient determination and drive to help them improve as quickly as possible. He was already planning for the future when they hadn't even completed their first hunt yet. Besides that, he knew they would have to part soon after exterminating those reapertails and finding Dave and he couldn't spend much more time imparting his knowledge upon them.

Kieran studiously ignored the strange feeling of wistfulness and instead focused on what he needed to concentrate on right now. As he was responsible for mentoring a new group of hunters, he _knew_ he need to stop slipping so often into his thoughts and pay more attention. Despite knowing the brevity of their alliance, he fully intended on taking it seriously, no matter his conflict over the situation.

In all honesty, he still found it hard to believe that he was actually traveling with Noctis, Ignis, Prompto, and Gladio. Never in his wildest dreams, would be ever consider that this would happen. Kieran found himself immensely baffled and conflicted over the situation. While he did feel some mild resentment towards Cindy for putting him on the spot earlier like that, he couldn't blame her for wanting the group to survive past their first hunt. Having had the time to think it over, Kieran realized Cindy had wanted them together out of sheer worry. Few newbie hunters survived past the first few _years_ unless they had a mentor teaching them the do's and don'ts. Kieran was already starting to suspect that Cindy will likely try and _succeed_ to get him to escort the foursome to Galdin Quay, as insurance for their safety.

Regardless, the quartet were immensely ignorant outside Insomnia with their lack of experience, while Kieran was well-known for his knowledge and experience as a solo hunter, so it made sense that Cindy would have wanted them to team-up and hope that he would help them with the basics, instead of letting them figure out everything on their own. And she had cleverly emotionally manipulated him into giving in and he found himself feeling reluctantly impressed at her cunning.

 _Still_.

That didn't mean he wasn't concerned about what _could_ happen. So many things could go wrong out in the wilderness, all it would take would be _one_ misstep. Kieran sighed internally, frustrated by his thoughts repeatedly going in circles, but the worry refused to abate. This is _exactly_ why he preferred hunting by himself. No need to worry about anyone else getting hurt. Or getting lost. It was… _maddening_ in a sense.

He wasn't exactly having the easiest of times adjusting to this new partnership. He was more used to going solo and not having to worry about the safety of others. The idea of failure made for a great motivator nonetheless. He had already failed _once_ trying and failing to keep people alive on his hunts. Having to go back and inform their family of their death and express apologies and condolences was heart-wrenching enough. He really didn't know how Dave could deal with it. Then again, Dave was rather self-sacrificial and had a bit of guilt-complex over all those lives lost, as he kept looking for any dog tags and risking his life to find them. Plus, as the son of the current leader of the Hunters, he understood that Dave felt responsible for their safety.

The thought of even _more_ lives being lost due to his inattention made him…feel him a bit _sick_ , honestly. If thought of having to tell Cindy that he had failed after entrusting their _lives_ into his care wasn't motivation enough, he still had his pride as a hunter, even if he was only one by a technicality, and being responsible for keeping the Chosen King and his entourage alive long enough for them to be able to stand on their own.

Kieran huffed out a laugh, amused by his own conceit. The thought that he could possibly accidentally cause the death of the foretold _King of Light_ was rather hilarious, after all. Still, that doesn't mean he couldn't become wracked with worry. Without fail, Kieran _always_ found something to worry over. Whether it was his worry over social incompetence, supplies, or triple-checking his research to make sure he had written down his theories and results correctly about recent research, or something else, he _always_ , without fail, managed to find something new or old to worry over.

Traveling with other people was somewhat new though. Kieran often had to track down and rescue hunters who had gotten themselves in over their head whether by accident or foolishly taking on hunts ill-prepared. So, this wasn't exactly new to him. However, traveling with Noctis and his friends felt _different_ somehow.

Maybe because he was acting as a temporary mentor to them? Because he felt emotionally invested in them despite his best efforts? He didn't know how to describe it.

It was so _strange_.

Kieran found it abnormal how Noctis and his friends had shown such _trust_ his words, opinions, and were so seemingly unconcerned about him guiding them. If he was completely honest, it was a bit creepy. Not even _Cindy_ showed that much trust at first. It had taken months of her getting to know him bit by bit, before she had displayed that kind of trust. What made them so different? Their trust in him was a bit naive, if Kieran had been _anyone else_ , that kind of trust could have bitten them in the ass. He really had to wonder why they were taking that chance.

Despite his suspicions, he found a large part of himself eagerly soaking up the attention and trust. While he wasn't about to admit it _outloud_ , he was genuinely _happy_ they were listening to what he had to say and trusting he knew what was best. And honestly, he felt really _eager_ to pass on the experience he has learned from his _misadventures_ as a hunter. He never felt like this before.

...

Hm, it _did_ make sense that they were listening so closely and trusting him because _Cindy_ trusted him to take care of the quartet. After all, at one point, Cid had been one of King Regis' closest guards and friends, so it _would_ make sense that they'd assume that a friend of Cindy's would have been vetted and proven trustworthy. Adding to the fact that Kieran himself was an experienced local hunter of the region and had been so willing to answer their questions and explain what he knew, even after such a… _rough_ start.

Kieran internally cringed, remembering his earlier behavior and harsh words. He hadn't _wanted_ to act like that, but he couldn't see any other way to get them to go away. But, it failed regardless and he was _certain_ that they thought of him as an asshole, no matter what Cindy had said about him being a _softie_.

 _Ugh. Talk about a plan going down in flames._

Ignoring the strange disappointment he felt knowing that they would likely dislike him, Kieran found himself still practically internally _writhing_ in curiosity, caught in the same desire to _know more_ that had spawned his well-documented obsession with daemons, monster, and magic. To know what they are like outside of the game. To know their likes, dislikes, personalities, goals, hobbies, _everything_.

Kieran found his sudden obsession in the foursome rather odd, after all, he had been so determined to avoid them at all costs and _now_ , his own mind was betraying him. He'd be amused by his own contradictory actions if it wasn't so maddening.

He hated that his own soft nature would betray him like _this_.

Kieran squinted tearfully, wiping away the sand that had just blown into his face and gotten into his eyes, vaguely registering the low conversation coming from behind him. His eyes, once again, carefully scanned the wasteland, searching for the signs of a reapertail, but it looks like the tracks nearby were still far too old for it to be recent, so they were in for a while of walking. Plus, his Intuition told him they were still quite a distance away from their target. Kieran hummed softly, considering his options, before nodding to himself decisively.

 _It would be best to explain_ _ **that**_ _particular aspect hunting before we get into the thick of things Plus… how_ _ **exactly**_ _do they plan on fighting if they have no visible weapons? I know they are able to summon weapons from some kind of hammer space or alternate mystical dimension due to the magical abilities of the Lucis royal bloodline and connection to the Crystal, but they_ _ **don't**_ _they that_ _**I**_ _know that._

 _ **Heh**_ _, I wonder what lies they'll come up with? There's no way that they'll give me the truth voluntarily. After all, I'm still an unknown to them and they only met me a few hours ago. Even_ _ **if**_ _they trust me with their lives, that doesn't mean that they_ _ **completely**_ _trust me._

Kieran felt his mood darken at _that_ particular line of thought, after all, he knew that trust over physical and emotional well being were entirely two different things. He felt oddly disappointed by the thought. He sighed softly, before abruptly stopped and twisted around to face his 'wards', his face still set in forced neutrality.

They all jerked to a stop as well, having nearly fallen over due to the sand causing them to slip. Prompto had perked up and asked curiously, looking a bit worried. "Hey, why'd you suddenly stop? Is something wrong?" Noctis, Ignis, and Gladio also looked curious at to Kieran's sudden actions.

Kieran gave a bland smile and shook his head. "No. There's nothing wrong. I just thought… that I should explain a certain aspect of hunting before we get into the thick of it, we are still a quite a ways from our destination, judging by those tracks. I thought I might as well explain now. And… well, there's another _issue_ we ought to discuss. But, that's for later." While the words had come out amiably enough, Kieran noticed how wary Ignis and Gladio looked when the empathized word issue had left his mouth. Prompto, surprisingly, also picked up on his hint, looked nervous.

 _Good, they're wary. I would expect nothing less from the Shield and Advisor of our future King. Although, I didn't expect for Prompto to pick up on it as well._

Noctis tilted his head, looking a curious mix of interest and skepticism. "What do you mean 'another aspect'? I thought all hunters did was hunt down their targets and keep an eye out for particularly aggressive monsters?"

Kieran sent him an bland glance and spokey dryly, amused despite himself at the Prince's ignorance. "And _yet_ , it seems to escape you that hunters are responsible for the safety of the citizens of Lucis. But, you are correct, that is _one_ of the responsibilities that hunters have. Hunters also escort civilians for various reasons, as well as bringing injured hunters from perilous locations. We also investigate dangerous ruins and other significant locations where aggressive creatures and daemons have been spotted. Caves and underground ruin in particular are _rife_ with daemons. After all, wherever there is darkness, a daemon is sure to be there."

To his approval, the quartet was listening avidly now and Noctis looked awkwardly apologetic, making Kieran realize he hadn't meant for the question to come out as it did. Ignis looked particularly exasperated while Prompto and Gladio snickered at the Prince's faux pas, and Noctis hesitantly asked. "I didn't realise hunters had so much to do. Why don't more people know about this?"

Prompto chipped in shortly after. "Yeah, I mean, hunters seem pretty important in Lucis, so why isn't this more well-known?"

Kieran sighed sadly at their questions and spoke candidly, wishing he could give a more positive answer. "And why would Insomnians care about what Lucians outside of the capital do? As long as they are behind their Wall, they have nothing to fear from daemons. Thanks to King Regis, the Wall repels all daemons. They aren't in danger, so why should they care about what goes beyond their walls?"

Noctis and Prompto looked surprised at his answer, Kieran noticed Ignis and Gladio looked somber at his words and he winced, realizing his bitterness had come through into his words. He shook his head in consternation and back-pedaled. "A-Anyway, we went a bit off-topic there. Going off of what I was saying, if becoming a hunter was _that_ simple, we wouldn't have such a rigorous vetting process. Technically, _anyone_ can pick up a bounty and become a hunter, so that process weeds out _undesirables_."

Ignis, Noctis and Gladio nodded in understanding, while Prompto appeared confused and asked. "What do you mean 'undesirables'?"

Kieran placed his hands in his pants pockets as he mused on how to answer that. "Well… sometimes you get people who want to take advantage of others, you know? Like, say… someone came to a small town way out there and told them there was a group of creatures nearby and they volunteered to take care of them for a _price_. Sounds reasonable enough, _right_?"

Prompto stared at him, looking puzzled at what he was getting at exactly, before his eyes widened in understanding. "... _Oh_. You mean that those people would use the danger to gain protection money? People would really do _that_?"

Kieran nodded in confirmation, satisfied that the blond boy had picked it up so quickly. "Yes. It does happen every once in awhile. Adding in the fact that it would give hunters everywhere a bad name, said hypothetical town would only have the hunter's word that the so-called danger was nearby. It's partly why tipsters are so important. Along with giving hunters valuable information, they also warn civilians about certain areas to avoid."

Seeing their understanding, Kieran moved on, eager to get to his main point. "Regardless, that isn't what I wanted to talk about, but I'm glad you brought it up, Prompto." The blond became flushed and fidgeted awkwardly, making Kieran's head tilt in curiosity at his action, but soon continued on. "Another vital aspect of being a hunter is collecting parts of the creatures we slay. It doubles as a source of income when we sell the parts and it also helps arm our hunters with both weapons, potions, and accessories. "

Seeing their quizzical expressions, Kieran elaborated excitedly, visibly passionate about what he was talking about. "In all honesty, it isn't cost efficient for the Hunter HQ to supply each and every hunter with needed supplies. If HQ decided to try that, then they'd be broke within a couple months. So, they circumvent that through this route. Simply put, when hunting down various beasts and daemons, we collect intact parts from the creature's corpse. These ingredients can be crafted into different sorts of potions, as well as modding or creating new types of weapons. Some rare components can even be used in the creation of protective amulets. It's kind of like recycling in a sense. And if someone doesn't have a use for some parts, they can always trade or sell them to a nearby merchant in exchange for gil or something they want. Although, depending on their rarity, some can sell for varying prices."

To his amusement, Kieran noticed the quartet, _especially_ Ignis, were listening to his words avidly in fascination. He snapped his attention back to his lecture and continued. "Besides that, shopkeepers have a limited stock of merchandize that they are able to sell at any given time. It can take _days_ , maybe _weeks_ if there are complications, for a merchant to resupply their stock and that can cost lives if a hunter doesn't have enough potions or a strong enough weapon or protective amulet. The high demand from hunters make it impossible for merchants to keep up. Thus, we came up with the solution of collecting monster and/or daemon parts to lessen the burden."

Ignis looked fascinated by the concept, and spoke thoughtfully. "That makes a great deal of sense, I never considered how hunters kept themselves well-supplied while allowing them to not bankrupt themselves in the process with such excessive costs."

Kieran felt charmed by his interest and explained. "It _is_ a useful, yet somewhat hazardous process for hunters. But, with alchemists like myself, and blacksmiths, we can create valuable items for hunters that can save their lives."

"Wait, seriously?!" Prompto interjected suddenly. "You can actually scavenge that kinda stuff for potions and weapons? I mean, I can understand that anak and dualhorn meat can be used for cooking, but seriously?" Kieran merely nodded, understanding that it had been partly a question and partly an expression of disbelief. He could understand how the gunner was so disbelieving. It had been difficult for him to believe as well when he first found out about it, even with his foreknowledge.

When Kieran had first found out about how potions were made, he originally likened it to Harry Potter-esque potions and that had been what had drawn him into becoming an alchemist. He quickly discovered there was a lot more involved in the process then just mixing stuff together when he had been apprenticed under Kimya, but had thrived despite the challenge. It had the added bonus of helping his understanding of various monsters and daemons as well.

Kieran smiled slightly and spoke. "It can depend on the alchemist or blacksmith, but we can do some amazing things with the ingredients we are given or collect. There is a short wait period, of course, as they take some time to be finished. Someone can also bring various materials over to a mechanic or blacksmith to improve their weapons and create mods. Unfortunately, I have no talent in blacksmithing or mechanics, I leave _that_ to Cid or the Hunter's lead blacksmith and mechanics. Cid, in particular, is a _master_ at his craft."

Kieran waited patiently as they digested that information and awaited further questions. After all, this was new territory for them and he wanted to make sure they remembered everything correctly, as it was vital for any hunter. Plus, Kieran thought as he grimaced slightly, his throat was starting to feel a bit dry. He had done more talking today then he had ever done in _weeks_.

"A 'mod'? What's that?" Gladio asked suddenly, grinning at startling Kieran, as he had been pretty quiet until then. He had noticed Gladio seemed to be watching Kieran as closely as he had been watching everyone else. And to be honest, it was more than a _little_ unnerving. Although, it's only to be expected as the King's Sworn Shield. Didn't stop it from being a bit creepy though.

Kieran quickly shook off his meandering thoughts and answered. "Mods, or modifications, are optional features that a hunter can have added onto their weapon for some _interesting_ _effects._ With my own spear, I added a new mod to it that increased its effectiveness against daemons that use fire-based abilities. Although, it wore out rather quickly, so I think I may switch back to its previous mod. We are _still_ discovering things regarding mods, so we need to keep a close eye on our weapons and its mods. Some mods have been known to conflict with certain properties in a weapon and can quickly destabilize its structure at a rapid pace. It needs to be watched out for. A hunter with a broken weapon is a dead man walking after all, especially once night time hits."

Gladio nodded in approving understanding, he also had a satisfied glint in his eye that Kieran wasn't quite sure about. Ignis, had been writing down notes during his explanation, while Prompto looked exceedingly nervous at his last words. Kieran theorized that the gunner was anxious over a mix of the possibility of his weapon breaking and facing down daemons. It made sense, this would be his first time facing daemons.

Noctis, Kieran noticed, had a rather _fascinated_ glint in his eye, which was kind of creeping him out a little. Well, given the game's mechanic for mixing spells to create devastating effects, he supposed that mods would be interesting and seem similar enough to mixing spells. Although, Kieran found himself hoping he wouldn't be in the line of fire during any such… _experiments_. He had heard enough horror stories in the past few years from Cid about King Regis and Lord Amicitia's antics in mixing spells with rather disturbing and destructive effects.

Taking a breath, Kieran exhaled before continuing. "As I'm sure you have already guessed, mods aren't permanent and you can switch them out with a blacksmith or mechanic's help, but it's important that a person needs to get used to the effect of a mod. It can drastically affect your fighting style in some cases depending on the attributes of the mod. So, please take care in choosing which mods you wish to use. Some mods are made to absorb miniscule amounts of elemental energy that various creatures and daemons give off, which can be used to recover health or stamina. Others have singular effects such as poisoning or enhancing a weapon's effectiveness against certain types of opponents. It depends entirely on your preference."

 _Alright, this getting_ _ **really**_ _creepy. Seriously, what is up with him? I'm really starting to regret bringing this up._

Kieran watched warily as the glint in Noctis' eyes seemed to grow with each word he said. He noticed Gladio, Prompto, and Ignis seemed to be exchanging amused, knowing glances, obviously knowing why Noctis was acting that way, but saying nothing.

Kieran mentally tried shrugging it off as he bent down and unsheathed his daggers from their sheath within his boots and showed them off as an example. The sharp metal glinted ominously in the sunlight, an odd green glow outlined them. "My knives have been modified to add a poisoning effect and have been strengthened to add more effectiveness to critical hits. But, forgive me, I'm gotten _far_ off-topic."

Kieran re-sheathed his blades and sheepishly said. "I had originally intended on only explaining the scavenging aspect of hunting, but it seems I was a bit _too_ excited to talk about it. Anyway, do you understand what I told you thus far?"

Ignis, Prompto, and Gladio nodded their understanding, but Noctis spoke up and asked, still looking disturbingly excited, moving slowly in his personal space. "You said that mods can be added to weapons and other equipment hunters use, but it is limited to them?" Prompto immediately started snickering as Gladio looked even more amused than before and Ignis shook his head, looking exasperated once again. Kieran blinked in surprise and wondered what he was getting at, as he asked. "Mind clarifying on that? Is there something you wanted modded that isn't a weapon? Like, your car?"

Kieran really had to wonder if asking that question was _really_ a good idea, as Noctis looked strangely excited right now. Although, you really couldn't tell looking at his face, his eyes and body language was a dead giveaway, he was practically _thrumming_ with energy. Noctis spoke with frenzied excitement. "What about fishing equipment? Rods, lures, line, and other things? Can mods be added to them as well?"

…

 _What._

 _ **How**_ _can_ _ **anyone**_ _look that excited at the thought of modding fishing equipment? Weapons, accessories, that I can understand, but_ _ **fishing equipment**_ _?_ _ **Seriously**_ _?_

Noctis's eyes were practically _sparkling_ with visible excitement as he gazed back at Kieran in anticipation. Kieran found his shoulders stiffening at being faced with such an expectant gaze. It gave him flashbacks to his old school days where he had to give a presentation and had been unknowingly guilt-tripped into it by his so-called _teammates_. Dazed by the Prince's exuberant energy, Kieran noticed from the corner of his eye, that the other three looked extremely amused by his sudden speechlessness, even Ignis.

Kieran stared back at Noctis, visibly bewildered at the question and scrambled through his memory for the answer, and spoke hesitantly. "There _are_ specific mods for different fishing equipment, however, they aren't exactly easy to find or make. As far as I know, a man called Navyth is the most well-known buyer on that particular market of mods, but it _is_ gaining speed as more people are getting more interested in fishing and it's gaining popularity as a sport."

Kieran belatedly remembered that Noctis had a passion for fishing, much like how Gladio had survival as his hobby, Ignis with his cooking, and Prompto with photography. It was a really well-known fact within the fandom, so it shouldn't have been _that much_ of a surprise to Kieran, and yet, he had somehow blocked that part from his memory.

The fact he had blocked it from memory wasn't too much of a surprise, especially given how many times he failed at fishing quests and rage-quitted so _many_ times. Honestly, those fishing missions gave him such a _headache_ and he discovered he loathed them with a _fiery_ _passion_. And yet, he refused to give up until he completed them all.

… _Maybe Mom was right when she said I had too much hard-headed stubbornness._

Still, Kieran couldn't understand the whole appeal to fishing as a sport or hobby. He could understand fishing to get some meat to eat or collecting specific fish scales for potions or weapons. But… fishing as an _enjoyable activity_?

 _That was just beyond him._

…

 _Whatever, it_ _ **wasn't**_ _important right now._ _**Really**_.

Kieran inwardly flailed frantically at how _sad_ and _disappointed_ Noctis looked right now, his pouting expression and slumped posture tugging at Kieran's heartstrings and making him feel guilty, and he sought to lessen that expression as it was making him feel bad. He found himself trying to think of something, _anything_ , to fix the situation, but drawing a blank.

Thankfully, to his surprise, Gladio came to his rescue, he didn't know if the Shield had noticed his panic or not, but he found himself not caring, immensely grateful for the intervention as he sent Gladio a thankful look, to which the larger man simply nodded in reply. Gladio smirked teasingly at Noctis and drawled. "Hey now, remember what we came out here to do, Noct. Leave the fun distractions for later. I swear, you're like a kid in a toy store whenever someone mentions fishing."

Noctis stilled at the reminder, but soon grinned sheepishly, stepping out Kieran's space bubble. "Uh yeah, sorry about that, I just really like fishing, so I got a bit excited there." Kieran nodded quickly, hoping to put the incident and his own awkwardness behind him. He found himself searching frantically for something to say, feeling unusually flustered and panicked.

"Sooo, now that we know about the scavenging thing, does that mean we can tackle those reapertails?" Prompto piped up, breaking the ice and immediately gained everyone's attention at his query.

Kieran felt extremely grateful at the change of topic and grabbed it with frenzied enthusiasm. " _Yes_ , yes, of course, _thank you_ for reminding me, Prompto. Now, if my tracking skills haven't failed me, then the first nest is in that direction!"

Desperately trying to ignore the strange looks he was most likely getting, Kieran focused completely on the reapertail tracks as he scrambled to regain his bearings and calm down, cursing his social incompetence. As he pressed a hand down on his chest, he found his heart thumping rapidly, feeling the uncomfortably warm flush of his embarrassment over having someone _that close_ and being the focus of so much attention.

 _Seriously, what happened just now was_ _ **not**_ _good for his nerves._

* * *

Having enough time to calm down from his earlier embarrassment and panic, Kieran mentally cussed himself out furiously. He was angry at himself for losing his cool so easily and he couldn't _believe_ he had entirely forgotten to talk about the second part he had meant to bring up. He growled softly to himself, trying to figure out how to bring it up, especially given they were now extremely close to the first reapertail nest. The group had decided to take cover behind an convenient boulder that was easily twice as tall as Gladio. He had had found the nest not long after that embarrassing incident and suggested they huddle up to plan.

 _It would probably be best to bring it up as bluntly as possible._

Kieran nervously went through a few breathing exercises, try to calm himself down as he listened to Ignis discuss a possible plan of attack, as he critically observed the surrounding area, crouched down along with the others behind a rather convenient boulder as he peeked out cautiously, and calculated the amount of reapertails of the first nest. Unusually large for a reapertail nest, but not much of an issue as long as the plan played out well.

Kieran glanced at the quartet, feeling unusually anxious, but it was best to get this out of the way as soon as possible. If they restricted themselves from their usual fighting style in fear of discovery, then it could cause some _nasty_ consequences. Even if they ended up distrusting him, they needed to able to fight at their best. Hunting was no joke, even with such weak targets. He worried at his lip before speaking up, feeling his back tensing in anticipation. "Before we start, I think it would be best if we got something out of the way first."

Noctis glanced at him quizzically, obviously wondering what he meant by that, Prompto looking equally puzzled, but he noticed Ignis and Gladio appeared a bit tense. Kieran pushed back his anxiety and spoke bluntly. "To get straight to the point, I know who you all _really_ are." He then waited for their reactions, most likely denying his words. And they failed to disappoint.

Prompto and Noctis immediately went tense and avoided his gaze, while Gladio seemed calm but his stance shifted slightly, obviously intending on taking him down if he proved to be a threat. It was Ignis who appeared most unruffled and took charge of the conversation and asked. "I'm afraid we don't know what you're talking about, Kieran. Could you be more specific?"

Despite the older man's polite words, Kieran noticed they had a subtle threatening tone to them. He also noted the ash-blond man's posture was open, yet seemed to say he would leap into action at any moment. Kieran inwardly quailed nervously and wished he hadn't been quite so blunt, but too late now.

Although, Kieran really had to mentally applaud that kind of control over his tone and body language and continued, sticking as close to the truth as possible. "I'll admit, I didn't exactly expect _Prince Noctis_ and his royal entourage coming through here so soon after the official announcement of the peace treaty, but that _doesn't_ mean I wouldn't immediately recognize the Crown Prince after living in Insomnia for so long. The media there has a particular obsession with your activities that borders on insane. And the Crownguard symbol on each of you gave you all away rather easily. Wherever a Crownsguard is, there is sure to be a royal in the vicinity."

His casual words stopped the group short, as they exchanged baffled glances, some more subtle than others. Gladio and Ignis went from battle-ready to casual once again at Kieran's strong hinted words. On the other hand, Prompto and Noctis still looked a bit nervous, Kieran was quick to clarify and reassure them. "To be blunt, I'm actually an Insomnian citizen, but I have lived outside the city the past six years due to my specialized research. You have nothing to fear from me, I have little interest in politics that don't directly affect my wanderings."

Kieran was satisfied to note the tension left the younger duo, and inclined his head respectfully at the foursome. "Admittedly, I was initially nervous to get involved with you all due to my… _distaste_ regarding politics, however, Cindy pushed the issue. Regardless, I was negligent in properly introducing myself, but I had no desire to draw attention to myself. I have a bit of a _annoying_ reputation that I spend time avoiding. My name is Kieran Arenas."

Gladio and Ignis appeared visibly shocked while Prompto and Noctis exchanged confused looks, clearly not recognizing his name, _thankfully_. Gladio stepped forward, appearing interested, and asked. " _Professor Kieran Arenas_? _The Genius Scientist of the Insomnian Daemon Research Division_? _That_ Arenas?"

Kieran nodded curtly, inwardly groaning as he gave the broad man a bland look, not wanting to discuss his reputation, but understanding it was needed. Sadly, during his years of dedicated research, he had gained an absurd reputation in the scientific communities as a prodigy and had made waves in the understanding of daemons. People has theorized his research had actually boosted said understanding up by a decade.

His young age and documented intelligence had even further boosted his prestige and had regrettably caught the attention of many high positioned people, particularly in Insomnia and Niflheim. Thankfully, a great deal of Lucians knew who he was, but rarely brought attention to the fact, respecting his desire for his opinion, the attention was highly unnecessary and completely _idiotic_.

Kieran dearly regretted ever drawing the attention of _Niflheim_ , as they often sent spies after him, trying to gather information on himself for unknown reasons and even trying to approach him. Understandably, it made him nervous and worried, even if he easily lost them on chases around the country. Although, he supposed it was only to be expected, the Niffs specialized in using daemons and experimenting with daemons to use as weapons in their war tactics.

Kieran wrenched his attention back to the quartet as Ignis gazed at him curiously and murmured. "Interesting. I thought I had heard that Professor Arenas was in the Cleigne region? I suppose that was mere misdirection on your part?"

Kieran sighed, placing a hands on his knees, easily balancing his weight in the position, and agreed, glad he didn't have to explain _that_ particular _mess_. "Yeah, I have practice in avoiding detection and sending my _stalkers_ on wild goose chases. Anyway, enough about that, _that_ wasn't why I brought Prince Noctis' status up in the first place."

Noctis interjected irritably, visibly annoyed, much to Kieran's internal amusement. "Knock it off with the 'Prince' stuff, just Noctis is fine. So, why bring it up all of the sudden then?"

Kieran surmised that Noctis must not like being referred to by his royal titles and nodded, complying with his request. "I brought it up because of the magic that the Lucis Caelum family uses. I have no doubt that you and your friends are able to use it, correct?"

Prompto nodded, visibly wary at where he was going with his question, obviously questioning his motives. "Yeah, we all can. Why ask though?"

Kieran shot them all a dry look and spoke sarcastically, trying to ease the tension. "Tell me, are you all used to fighting without it? I sincerely doubt it, so I thought I'd clear the air and let you know that _I know_ so you'll be free to enter combat as you wish. It doesn't do any of us any good to restrict yourself from fighting as best you can." The quartet blinked at that, appearing thrown at his candor, but soon recovered and showed their understanding.

Kieran inclined his head in approval and jerked his head behind him, in the direction of the reapertails. "I'm glad we got that out of the way. Now, shall we discuss our plan of attack? I'd really rather not waste anymore time. We only have a limited amount of daylight as it is and I'd rather get this done as soon as possible."

The foursome exchanged looks and appeared to have an unspoken conversation before nodding, Ignis speaking up. "Certainly. We are as eager as you to get moving."

Kieran hummed his understanding and spoke thoughtfully, leaning back and letting the boulder behind him take his weight, considering their options. "If I were by myself, I'd prefer to sneak around and carefully pick off each reapertail individually in a hit-and-run approach. However, that tactic isn't going to work here, as we are a group of five. I don't know any of your individual fighting styles, even if I can make guesses based on what I observed about the four of you. What would you all suggest we do? I must reiterate, you all must be able to be fast enough to keep out of reach of their barbs or block them."

The quartet made noises of understanding and Ignis spoke, looking over at the nest. "I would suggest one of us being a distraction for the main group, so the rest could attack our targets from behind, possibly allowing us to cull most of them before they are able to react. I would suggest Noctis, he is fast enough to keep out of reach and will be able to warp away from danger. What do you say, Noct? Feel up to it?"

Noctis scoffed playfully and retorted. "What? You think those things would make me get cold feet? _Hardly_." Kieran nodded in acceptance of the tactic and Noctis' unspoken agreement. Taking in account of what he remembered from the game, Gladio was strongest if a bit slow in attacking, Noctis was fast and adaptable, Ignis favored tactical moves, and Prompto tended to choose his shots carefully and was usually in the most danger, as he was primarily long-range.

Although, given the Prince's hot-headed tendency to dive head-first into fights, Kieran sighed in resigned acceptance, knowing he'd have to keep an eye out for the younger duo. Gladio and Ignis were more level-headed and experienced so he wouldn't have to worry too much about them. Still, that didn't mean he should let down his guard, even if his Intuition was telling him that the danger was minimal.

Kieran carefully stood up, unsheathing his daggers as he did so, noticing the group following his lead as well, and grinned devilishly. "We all know what to do. So, let's get started, shall we?" The murmurs of agreement answered him and Kieran moved off to circle behind the reapertail nest.

 _Well, this should be energizing if nothing else. Let's see how these kids do._

* * *

Kieran watched his first target calculatingly, analyzing their movements while hiding in the shade of a tree as he was waiting patiently for Noctis to cause the distraction, as well as registering the other three's positions. Belatedly, he remembered the young Prince seemed oddly _ecstatic_ about being bait and felt vague stirrings of concern, but seeing as his sense wasn't screaming at him to run like a bat out of hell or to drag off the Prince before he hurt himself, he ignored it. If Noctis could cause an effective diversion, then it was all fine.

 _...The blazes is he doing?_

Kieran stared incredulously as Noctis charged right at the nest before disappearing in a flash of blue light after he threw his sword, he reappeared right in the middle of the reapertail nest to throw down a small, glowing grenade-like object before he warped out again. A few moments later, said object burst out in an icy explosion, killing off a good number of the creatures and quickly freezing the rest, leaving Kieran and the others took the opportunity charge and finish off the rest.

 _Well, at least the Prince isn't_ _ **completely**_ _insane. That's good…_ _ **I think**_ _._

Kieran ran forward, flipping the nearest reapertail onto its back with a swift kick, surprising it, and easily plunged his daggers into its soft underbelly, despite the frozen insides, piercing its heart. He quickly leapt backwards, slipping slightly on the sandy ground, but kept his balance as he avoided the poisonous barb of another. He quickly moved to block its next strike with one of his daggers before using the momentum of the reapertail's attack to flip it and end its life.

Kieran's gaze darted around the impromptu battlefield, assessing the wellbeing of his companions. Ignis and Gladio were easily holding their own and ending their target's lives and he noticed Noctis warping around the field like a bee on crack, easily taking down his opponents as he continually switched between weapons.

Kieran's eyes narrowed, seeing a reapertail advancing, its tail raised, behind an oblivious Prompto, whom was fighting against two of the creatures, and shot forward to fight it. He threw one of his daggers to temporarily pin its tail, before blocking hits from its claws before slamming his foot into its side, lifting it upward and swiftly penetrated its heart in the same motion, just as Prompto finished off his last opponent.

The sound behind him caused Prompto to spin around in surprise, eyes wide in surprise to see Kieran and a dead reapertail behind him, sending the scholar a grateful look before visibly shaking himself out of his shock as he turned back around to scan the area. Kieran already doing the same and was satisfied to notice that the rest of the nest was dead, after removing his dagger from the dead reapertail's barb. He was relieved to notice none of the foursome had any injuries, his lips curving into a pleased smile.

 _Not bad for a fight that lasted a couple minutes._

After carefully double-checking the area by scanning it with his Intuition, Kieran relaxed slightly and crouched down to extract samples from the reapertails and other useful parts. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the quartet watching his actions before moving to copy him. He smiled, glad that they had remembered his lecture from earlier, but unsurprised seeing as they were currently broke and would need all the gil they could gather.

To his amusement, Kieran noticed that Gladio had already gathered most of the parts and nodded to the man in thanks, receiving an grin in response. He supposed it made sense given Gladio's tendency to pick up useful items within the game after every fight. Standing up again, Kieran spoke. "Good job on your first fight. A couple minor mistakes, but they can be easily remedied."

He noticed Prompto flushing in embarrassment and ducking his head shamefully. Kieran shook his head and reassured him. "No, Prompto. You did _fine_ for a first-timer. Self-awareness in the battlefield is something you'll develop as you gain experience."

Prompto raised his head, shoulders loosening and nodded, as Kieran turned back to the others noticing the other three relaxed as well. He tilted his head curiously before surmising they had thought he would be harsh with the blond. He hadn't lied, Prompto had done well for a rookie, all he needed was experience and to gain awareness of his surroundings. Knowing what he knew, this was Prompto's first fight and he did remarkably well. Although, Kieran was really regretting the awful first impression he made on them if they assumed he would be such an ass to the gunner.

Kieran shook himself out of his guilty and regretful thoughts before they started himself on an internal rant about it and addressed the foursome, sounding a bit subdued, even to himself. "Anyway, we only finished part of your task so far, there are two other nests of reapertails that we need to exterminate. So, let's get moving."

He then strode off in the direction of the nearest nest, analysing the auras with his Intuition and comparing it with the notes he had gotten from Takka about the other nest's general locations. Luckily, it appeared that the nearest nest was their next target and his instincts were right. Kieran belatedly heard the quartet moving behind him and seemed to be talking amongst themselves, his shoulders slumping slightly.

 _Most likely about how I'm not as much an ass they thought I was or wondering how long my_ _ **niceness**_ _is going to last. I would be the first admit I'm not exactly the most socially acceptable of people, so I'm really not surprised my first impression on them went so badly. But, did you really have to seem_ _ **that**_ _surprised?_

 _ **Whatever**. _

_Focus on your goal, Kieran. That should be all that matters._

* * *

 _Sorry about the long wait on this chapter. Real Life, Tales of Berseria, and a few other things got in the way. I hope you enjoy this chapter. I hope you all enjoy it.  
_


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Only my SI/OC and my changes and ideas regarding this fanfic belong to me, everything else belong to its creators.

* * *

Final Fantasy XV: Twilight

Chapter Four

* * *

 _For every good reason there is to lie, there is a better reason to tell the truth_.

~Bo Bonnett

* * *

 _May 13th, M.E. 756_

 _Hm, we're definitely getting closer._

Kieran mused lazily as he gazed off into the distance of the sparsely decorated wasteland, sensing the presence of the nest and mentally calculating the distance to be about a mile or so off. Provided, of course, that _something_ doesn't happen that causes everything to go into the shitter. And with the way his luck has been going lately, it's practically guaranteed.

… _Please let me not have just jinxed myself._

Visibly wincing, Kieran shook off those fate-tempting thoughts and glanced over to where Ignis, Gladio, and Noctis were gathering food ingredients. Ignis having _persuaded_ Noctis into helping him and Gladio having followed along. Leaving himself and Prompto waiting in the shade of a nearby boulder.

Kieran and the boys had just finished off the second nest of reapertails only a little while ago and had been taking a small break, as the heat had been starting to get to them. Ignis had spotted the several resource points under a tree and had dragged Noctis and Gladio with him to check it out, citing the need for their help to extract the stuff.

The Advisor made an immediate beeline for it after confirming with Kieran about the edibility of the produce and how useful they'd be in cooking. While not having an sort of expertise in cooking, he was able to confirm that they could be used in various dishes.

Begging off going with them, Kieran had stayed behind to rest and stretch out his sense for the last nest while waiting.

Gladio, he observed, seemed to making the most of his time while scavenging for useful items, while helping out Ignis and appeared particularly triumphant about it. The King's Shield had already found some valuable materials that he was just _itching_ to play with, as they were unusual items that were somewhat difficult for an alchemist to find and Gladio just _happened_ to run across them. He was inclined to believe that Gladio had the devil's luck in scavenging.

Not that Kieran was complaining, but he had to wonder how Gladio kept finding these items. He sighed and lamented that such a valuable skill was wasted on a warrior. Having such a skill is worth its weight in gold for any alchemist.

 _Hm… maybe he could be convinced to help me out in finding rare materials? Hopefully, he amenable to being hired for such a task._

Kieran blearily blinked as he listened to the intermittent clicking of a camera behind him and smiled slightly. At first, Prompto's habit of taking pictures of anything that caught his eye had been a bit annoying. The continual noise grating on his nerves since they left Hammerhead, making him twitch in irritation each and every time he heard it, but as time went on, he got used to it after the first couple hours and accepted it as background noise. Plus, it had the added benefit of letting him know where Prompto was behind him.

 _I still have no idea how the_ _ **hell**_ _he's managed to take pictures during combat though._

Kieran thought in exasperation, having already needed to come to the gunner's rescue a few times already. Thankfully, the blond was a natural at evading and keeping foes at a distance. The group had a few… _encounters_ with a couple dualhorns that lead to him having to _literally_ drag Prompto away before he got run over by the charging beasts.

 _That kid has the survival instinct has a_ _ **dead**_ _lemming, I swear._

Kieran deliberately ignored all memories of Dave and other hunters having to do the _exact same thing_ for him whenever he got too into his research on the field and telling him what they thought about his own sense of self-preservation. He was sure they were exaggerating, Kieran doubted he was _that_ bad.

Kieran was still somewhat surprised though, he had initially expected that Prompto would have followed along with the rest of the group, but had begged off as he admitted to wanting to take some shots of the scenery. His curiosity soothed, Kieran had since then blanked out the noise behind him and focused on finding the last nest.

Honestly, he was baffled that Ignis had accepted that excuse, as he didn't seem too thrilled when Noctis tried getting out of it. Kieran's own excuse of saying that he was intending on tracking their next target had gotten him out of it. Adding to that, he cited his own ignorance in judging cooking ingredients.

The ash-blond man seemed strangely appalled when Kieran explained that he never developed his cooking skill beyond making cup noodles and easy-make dinners back in Insomnia. And how after leaving the capital city, he just found it more useful to to a restaurant to get food and information.

 _Killing two birds with two stones, as it were._

And he had no desire to further develop his cooking skill, even if he loved baking when he had the time. Kieran mentally cursed his sweet tooth and grumbled, thinking of all the time he lost baking sweet treats when he could have been furthering his research.

Thankfully, due to his frequent patronage, most shop owners and tipsters gave him a minor discount, so it didn't murder his wallet _too_ badly. Although, they tended to give him lectures on the importance of eating more than sweets and having multiple meals a day. But, it cut into what little time he had each day to research, so he generally ignored the advice.

Lack of gil wasn't really much of a concern, seeing as Kieran had finally achieved the high Hunter rank of Hand of Mercy. As such, he was authorised to go on hunts that were of the highest difficulty that paid well in both protective amulets and gill. Plus, he didn't use for much else.

Aside from buying necessities, such as hygienic items, new clothes, and other needed necessities, he didn't need to bother buying much of anything. His clothes generally got ruined either due to various bodily fluids or getting ripped up by tusks, horns, or claws whenever he inevitably got in over his head.

As an alchemist, he always created his homemade elixirs, he didn't need to shell out money for potions. He found no shortage of potion ingredients in the field, so he didn't need to buy those either. As a result, Kieran had saved up a monstrous amount of gil, so it made eating out all the time pretty easy.

Especially, with all the dangerous hunts he found himself going on all the time. Kieran still felt proud over having _finally_ earned that high hunter ranking after a good chunk of nearly _five years_. Once you consider the benefits, it was easily well-worth the effort.

He finally gained the respect of a majority of the hunters, even if there were still those that were disdainful due to his age. Even still, compared to being treated like some ignorant rookie when he first started out and now being regarded as an equal, there was a major difference.

It also had the bonus of him being alerted to the more _unusual_ hunts that were beyond capabilities for regular hunters. Having spent five years making a name for himself among the hunters, he had amassed a great deal of contacts and informants, so he didn't think of it as a waste of five years.

Said tip-offs through his contacts ended up being extremely useful for the advancement of his research. Hunting rare and unusual monsters and daemons, studying the different variations and recording his results had ended up furthering his research beyond his original expectations. Those hunts also had the added benefit of improving his combat ability.

 _No matter what Cindy says, the risk of gaining injuries and scars from the hunts is far outweighed by the benefits._

Much to his internal amusement, he discovered early on that his initial projections of his progress were being far outpaced by his successes. And it really made him question why no other daemon scientist ever thought that field research would prove to be more fruitful than just waiting in a lab. Needless to say, despite objections, he refused to return to Insomnia after discovering that particular fact.

Upon arriving at Hammerhead at fifteen, Kieran had been immediately been taken under the wing of Dave and taught the ropes of hunting and surviving out in Leide, Duscae, and Cleigne, as a condition regarding his emancipation. He had accepted easily, seeing it the quickest way to actually get the research material that he needed.

This, being the start of the confusion regarding his actual job. Most people tended to assume that he was a hunter, with a side job as a daemon research, when it was actually the other way around. Kieran even had to go through the paperwork and was instated officially within the Meldacio HQ database as an official, which further added to the confusion.

But, his tutelage under Dave ended up being a good thing, despite Kieran's previous experience and education in combat and weapon training, it hadn't prepared him for the reality of the monster and daemon-infested lands outside Insomnia. He had been woefully unprepared for living outside Insomnia and its Wall.

Kieran still found it amazing how much the Wall protected Insomnia from and privately thought that most Insomnians tended to take it for granted. It had taken some getting used to not having the safety of the Wall, camping out, and learning all the survival skills necessary. He had managed to get it all down within the first six months under Dave's attentive mentorship.

 _Although, there were a few mishaps here and there…_

Kieran blinked as he slowly dragged himself out of his rambling musings on the past, glancing over at the threesome in the distance again. He noted that Noctis seemed to be still grumbling about the heat _again_ , and yet, the Prince was still dutifully listening to Ignis and Gladio. He smiled slightly at the pouting expression on Noctis' face.

While he wouldn't ever admit it out loud, he found Noctis' whining kind of cute. Rather similar to a five year old tugging at his mother's skirts, wanting to go to home and sleep. Which, he thought, described Ignis and Noctis' relationship rather well. Given what he remembered from the Brotherhood anime and how the Advisor always seemed to be acting like a put-upon exasperated nursemaid during banter from the game.

His initial impression of Ignis was that of a mom-friend, which he still found true held to this day, and he respected how tolerant Ignis was of the Prince's spoiled antics. He knew if he had been in Ignis' place, his temper would have snapped long before now. To be honest, when he had watched that episode and discovered the _state_ of the apartment when Ignis came over to clean, he found himself appalled at the mess.

Kieran knew he wasn't exactly the most well-organized of individuals, but kept his own version of organized chaos. Yet, his own version of chaotic order was _one thing_ , but the state of that apartment was quite _another_. Hence, to this day, Kieran held great respect for Ignis' saint-like patience.

 _I highly suspect Noctis would attempt to murder me if I told him he reminded me of a whiny five-year old. A person's pride can be so…_ _ **delicate**_ _. Though, I don't really have room to complain, I'm a hypocrite seeing as I lost my temper and threw a fit when Noctis criticized me earlier._

In spite of their horrible first impression earlier, Kieran was slowly discovering that Noctis wasn't _that_ bad of a guy. Sure, they had a bit of a rough start and Kieran's own pride and feelings were still smarting from that insult, no matter how unintentional. Adding in his own embarrassment from how he reacted by completely losing it in front of them.

But, he was seeing that Noctis was just as socially awkward as he was from listening to the quartet's conversations. Noctis just tended to hide it behind a quiet, broody Prince exterior. Admittedly, Kieran already knew about the social awkward thing from the game, but it's different actually seeing it for himself and he hadn't thought Noctis was _that_ bad. It certainly put things in perspective.

 _And it certainly reminds me of that saying 'assumptions make an ass out of you and me.' I really need to stop assuming things about people._

Of course, that didn't mean Kieran was going to be buddy-buddy and everything with the Prince, but he was beginning to grasp the Prince's true personality. And he really needed to apologize to him soon. The brief apology he had given him earlier didn't feel right as they didn't know _why_ he had been so abrasive. Kieran resolved to explain things properly to Noctis when he had the time. No matter how anxious he felt about the very thought of opening up, admitting his mistakes, and apologizing.

Prompto was proving to be just as an much of an contradictory and complicated soul as the Prince was. Which Kieran knew firsthand from his own foreknowledge, but it was entirely different seeing Prompto as an actual person, as opposed to a video game character.

Kieran had thought that he had snapped himself out of his previous mentality of regarding people in Eos as just video game characters and thinking of them, instead, as people, but was rapidly discovering he still held fragments of his old way of thinking.

 _Bad habits die hard and all that._

When he had first seen and watched Prompto in his past life, he had seemed like your typical kind of joker character who seems to be only there for comedic value. But, it was just a well-crafted mask that could easily fool anyone unless they were looking for the hints.

Back then, Kieran had fallen into that exact trap and failed to notice all the hints of Prompto being more than that persona. Up until he witnessed Prompto's conversation with Noctis in Old Lestallum anyway. Watching Prompto open up to Noctis about his insecurities, that _achingly_ familiar lack of self-esteem and feeling of worthlessness…, it was like looking into a mirror. It had completely changed his initial perception of the blond gunner and Kieran started seeing characteristics of himself in the blond and that made him personally relatable.

Learning that Prompto was just hiding his insecurities and fears behind a mask just spoke to him. A mask that was created due to fear of rejection and persecution. Having done something similar in his past and now second life, Kieran could understand where Prompto was coming from.

Initially, Kieran had created his stoic and calm persona in order to guard himself from those who would make fun of his more _vulnerable_ characteristics. He knows how stand-offish and cold he acts tends to put people off, which enabled him to keep his worries and insecurities hidden behind a mask of surety.

Only his past family and friends both old and new have ever bothered to look past it and work at getting to know him. Most people just made snap judgements based on his outward persona and left it at that. And yet… there were the rare few who worked hard at getting under his skin. Cindy, Cid, Dave, Kimya, and Ezma being among his short list of people he knew he could trust with his _life_ , even if he couldn't trust them with the his _circumstances_. Thi small group being the only ones who ever invoked true displays of emotion from him.

 _Although, I suppose these four kids will soon be added to the list..._

At first, it may have just been Cindy whom had been the first to get behind his walls in her own sweet, slightly manipulative way, but Dave, Kimya, and Ezma had also cut through his bullshit in their own unique ways. They forced him to face the reality of his circumstance as an reincarnation and how Eos was his home now. He couldn't just pretend and keep himself distanced from human contact for the rest of his life.

The truth had been… _difficult_ to face. He had truly thought he had been doing fine on his own. But, he realized it had been merely a lie that he used to comfort himself in his loneliness. Although, it was… _nice_ to experience the warmth of companionship again, even if he knew he could never explain his _situation_.

His reincarnation had _always_ been a source of immense confusion. Initially, Kieran had searched high and low for any information regarding rebirth and had come up with _nothing_. It had been… _discouraging_ , to say the a while, he just gave up and stopped looking, focusing entirely on his research. But, that niggling feeling of wanting to know _why_ he, of all people, had been reborn never left.

If there was any information to be found about reincarnation, he suspected that either the Nox Fleuret and Lucis Caelum families had it. Another possibility was that only the Astrals could answer his question.

When he had realized that particular fact, he had spent quite a few hours cursing the air blue out of frustration of all that wasted effort and time. After all, he doubted he could ever meet with the Oracle and ask her if she knew. And he had no desire to tempt fate by trying to ask one of the Astrals about if he ignored the fact that they would only reply in the Old Tongue.

 _Essentially, I'm shit outta luck and I'm likely_ _ **never**_ _going to find out why_ _I was reborn_ _ **here**_ _, of all places. Well, I suppose it could be worse. I could have ended up as a plaything of the Astrals like Oracle Lunafreya and Noctis are._

Kieran's eyes darkened, his lips pressed into a thin line as he considered that particular possibility. Back in the beginning of his reincarnation, he had considered it a likely scenario, but he discarded it after many years of contemplation. Still. The very thought of being a t _oy_ of those immortal beings was galling to even consider. And potentially hazardous, given how they screwed up before with their first Chosen King and how both Nox Fleuret and Lucis Caelum lines were killed off due to said mistake.

Then again, given the theories he heard back in his first life, that the sacrifice may have been purposeful. Which was chilling to think about, as it just showed that the Astrals considered humans little more than _tools_ to move around as they desired. Leviathan and Ifrit just showed their apathy more than the others. Shiva was just plain frightening because she clearly showed fondness for humanity, particularly Luna, but was willing to ignore that fondness to see the two thousand year-old prophecy come to fruition.

 _I swear, they remind me a lot of the gods from Greek Mythology with their casual cruelty._

The soft click of a camera shutter going off behind him drew his attention from his negative thoughts. Kieran spun around and hummed curiously, wondering as to what the gunner was taking pictures of this time. He stared blankly at Prompto, whom was holding his camera near his face, gazing sheepishly back at him and laughs nervously, almost as if he thought he was in trouble.

 _Why would he be in trouble? He's just taking picture of…_ _ **Oh**_ _. I admit, I didn't really expect that._

Kieran blinks slowly back at the gunner, immediately realizing what the blond had been taking pictures of, but found himself unable to understand it. The gunner had been his camera right at his own back. So, he had been obviously taking pictures of him.

 _But…_ _ **why**_ _?_

Kieran paused in thought, it was possible that Prompto had been using himself as a model for the scenery picture he had been taking. Kieran didn't pretend to be all that knowledgeable about photography, surely there was some reason he had been taking the picture with him in it.

Kieran hesitated a moment, wondering if he was overreacting and seeing connections where there were none. Gathering his courage, he gave into his curiosity and decided he really did want to know. "Am I _that_ fascinating to you? Or am I in the way? I can move if you'd prefer?"

Kieran internally sighed in relief, his tone hadn't given away his nervousness at all. To his surprise, Prompto started flushing, stuttering and stopping for a few moments, before pulling himself together and replying, smiling nervously all the while. "Uh, well, not… exactly…I mean..."

Kieran tried smiling reassuringly, feeling the tension loosen and felt calmed by seeing the blond's own nervousness. "Relax. I'm not about to take your head off for taking pictures of me. Well, _if_ you start selling them... then I _may_ change my mind about that."

He gave a teasing smirk at that, taking care to adjust both his expression and tone to show that he was just joking. Cindy always told him that his default blank expression tended to be at odds with his voice whenever he tried joking around.

Prompto deflated in what Kieran assumed to be relief, still fidgeting with his camera nervously, before walking closer and babbling anxiously. "That wasn't what I was trying to do… I've been taking pictures for Noct's journey and well, you're a pretty important part of it. I mean, you're going to trouble of teaching us all this stuff about hunting and making sure we know enough to survive out here, even if Cindy had to kinda push you into it, so I thought… I could… you know, take a few pictures to remember you by. If it bothers you then I can stop!"

Kieran jerked back slightly, somewhat startled by the sudden exclamation at the end of the blond's mini-rant. He gazed back at Prompto, keeping eye contact as he looked into his eyes, trying to gauge the gunner's sincerity before nodding after a few moments, satisfied with the honesty he found there. While he wasn't the best at judging people and guessing their intentions, he could tell the gunner was being genuine.

He knew for a _fact_ that Prompto wasn't exactly the best liar. For all that he managed to keep his true origins hidden, until a certain _Chancellor_ blew that secret out of the water, the gunner was very much a heart on his sleeve kind of guy. Which, was pretty strange in his experience. Rarely, did he meet someone who is _that_ honest, yet able to keep secrets so well.

 _Even your average citizen has_ _ **some**_ _ulterior motive, no matter how small._

Having a vital secret of his own, Kieran could hardly begrudge Prompto's desire to keep it hidden. Especially given how _cruel_ most Insomnians could be about refugees in general and that's _without_ taking in account that Prompto was born in Niflheim.

Kieran internally winced in sympathy at the thought, he had to wonder how that had affected Prompto growing up and hearing how Niffs were so despised and loathed in Insomnia. Having to hide such an important part of his identity must have been a trial for him.

… _Shit. I stayed quiet for too long._

Kieran snapped himself out of his thoughts, feeling immensely guilty upon realizing that the blond was looking more and more anxious, the longer Kieran kept quiet. "Ah! I'm sorry, I just got lost in my thoughts for a few moments there."

He shifted nervously, seeing a bit of the anxiety drift away from the gunner's stance before approaching slowly. His slow and careful movements gave Prompto more than enough time to move away if he so chose and showing he wasn't going to make any sudden movements.

He hadn't _meant_ to scare the blond with his long pause.

Much to Kieran's surprise, the gunner willingly let him move closer into his personal space, albeit still appearing wary and worried, while visibly clinging to the remnants of his falsely confident persona. Kieran took a breath, feeling strangely nervous, before replying, but kept eye contact, despite wanting to look away out of nervousness, knowing him averting his eyes could send the _wrong_ message.

Kieran sent Prompto a nervous smile. "It doesn't bother me. You taking pictures, I mean. Could I… see them? If you don't mind, that is. I admit, I'm curious about what you've been taking pictures of. If you don't want to, that's fine."

Prompto stared wide-eyed at Kieran, clearly not expecting that response from him. Before visibly shaking himself out of his surprise, before reciprocating with a broad grin, visibly happy. "Oh yeah! Sure, just lemme just get to them. And you can't see them from that far away, come closer."

Feeling relieved at the lack of offense, Kieran obliged him and stepped closer into the blond's space, nearly leaning his head on his shoulder, staring down at the screen as the blond scrolled slowly through the pictures and explaining where he taken them and when.

Kieran noticed some of their earlier fights with the two reapertail nests, a great many of just the scenery, before Prompto finally got to a different folder. Kieran just stared unwaveringly, feeling awed by the _sheer talent_ in those pictures.

 _This is amazing… I knew he was talented, but_ _ **this**_ … _This is so beyond any talent I assumed he had._

 _ **Beautiful**_ _._

Kieran had always known that Prompto was skilled at photography, but knowing that and seeing it were two different things. It had been a secret pleasure of his, back in his former life while playing the game, to scroll through all the different pictures that Prompto had taken and pick out his favorites and save them. Kieran _loved_ seeing the quality of pictures improve whenever Prompto's photography skill leveled up.

Ironically, the Photography skill had been the first to max out in-game. Followed by Survival, Cooking, and Fishing in that exact order. Fishing, he remembered, had been _hell_ to max out. Kieran could easily see how practice certainly made perfect. And no wonder, Prompto had photography as his hobby since _middle school_ , as shown in the anime, and it possibly went back even further than that. And if this was how good Prompto's photography was _now_ , he couldn't _wait_ to see it as it improved.

While he had absolutely _zero_ talent in photography himself, Kieran was a passable artist due to constantly sketching diagrams for various monsters and daemons, so he could easily see the disparity between their skills. There was just no comparing the two. Prompto's attention to detail was nothing short of _awe-inspirin_ g.

Kieran grinned amused at Prompto, upon seeing the next few pictures, who immediately blushed and tried scrolling past as quickly as possible. Prompto had actually put in a few selfies in there, along with a few nice shots of Cindy. Obviously the blond hadn't intended on showing them to him given his embarrassment.

Honestly, Kieran never quite understood the whole selfie craze back when he was alive in his first life, but he found the idea of Prompto taking selfies adorable for some reason. And Kieran had always found the gunner's crush on Cindy cute, even if he didn't exactly have high hopes for Cindy agreeing to go out with the poor blond.

Kieran dragged himself out of his meandering thoughts again and his gaze went back to the pictures. He stared analytically at the various shots of himself, a few even mid-combat, trying to see what Prompto had seen when he had taken them. Kieran really didn't see anything special about the most recent picture of himself. He looked about as normal as ever.

The picture showed a full-body view of Kieran staring out at the Leide wasteland near some trees and rocks with Hammerhead in the distance, the sun shining bright down on him. This must have been taken a little after they had left Hammerhead.

It showed Kieran dressed in his typical all-black outfit with his zipped-up long-sleeved hooded coat that hit his knees, the long-sleeved, high-neck shirt with a Black Choker hidden around his neck, close-fitting slacks, and calf-high combat boots. His messenger bag slipped over his right shoulder to rest against his left side. His bag held his research notes compiled on his laptop, an extra spare of clothing, various potions, and emergency medical supplies.

His outfit was typical of any Insomnian and made specifically to combat the heat. Ordinarily, black clothing just flat-out absorbs heat and causes a person to easily overheat, but Insomnian clothing is specially made to disperse the heat absorbed and keep the wearer cool. As the kingdom of Lucis is mostly land with extreme high temperatures it makes sense that Lucis would have eventually developed a type of clothing that combated the heat.

Plus, his Black Choker's healing abilities actually helped prevent sunburn advance beyond a burning ache that he could easily ignore. Kieran doubted Prompto realized it, but he also had two other protective accessories under his clothing that he tended to switch out depending on the situation.

Moving on, Kieran's eyes traced his familiar spiky, messy black hair, that tumbled slightly past his shoulders, with the entire left side of his face completely covered by his hair, completely obscuring his unseen left green eye, yet not hindering his vision in the slightest. On the right side of his face, his visible blue eye stared out in thought, surrounded by his naturally pale skin that tended to burn easily in direct sunlight.

It was a little-known fact that Kieran actually had been born with heterochromic eyes. He had started to grow out his hair over the left side of his face for this exact reason during middle school. Kieran wasn't _scared_ of revealing his eyes per say, but the attention had been annoying as a child and he had even got bullied for it, until he had gotten the children to back off.

Humans tend to ostracize anything they feel is different. When he was younger, the children thought his different colored eyes were 'cool' up until they started hearing the adults talk about his 'mutation' and some teachers even demanded that he put in a contact lense to seem 'normal' and how it was a 'distraction'. It's what originally started up the harassment and bullying.

Well, _that_ , and the children reacting to the adult's condemnation of his interest into researching daemons. While disappointing that people could be so critical of his choices, it wasn't that surprising. Maybe it was cynical of him, but the few people that found his interest in daemons being useful, were actually quite surprising.

 _Hm… What does he see when he takes these pictures, I wonder? All I see is my normal self._

Kieran stared for a few more moments before sighing resignedly, giving up on understanding it, taking a step back as he spoke, tone laced with obvious admiration. "You definitely have talent, Prompto. I could easily see you making a living out of this if the whole Crownsguard gig doesn't go well. Granted, I really don't see why you bother taking pictures of me. I would be concerned you were deluded if I didn't see the beauty of _these_ pictures."

At his last word, he gestured towards the camera, obviously directing that statement towards the pictures he just saw. And then Kieran internally _winced_ , realizing the backhanded insult he had just made and he had likely just screwed up. He had spoken too soon without considering the effects of his words.

 _Why do I always bite myself in the ass like this? Just…_ _ **why**_ _?_

Surprisingly, Prompto flushed at the backhanded compliment, a smile slipping unbidden on his lips, before retorting. "Yeah, well, haven't you ever heard 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder'? Not everyone sees things the same way, you know?"

Kieran stared at the gunner in a mixture of surprise and relief, realizing Prompto either hadn't noticed his unintentional insult or ignored it, before grinning and shooting back. "I take it back, you must definitely be _deluded_ to be _that_ blind. Everyone has their flaws. So don't feel so bad about it, Prompto."

"So good to see you two getting along so well." Ignis' smoothly accented voice interrupted their friendly banter. Kieran had always thought his accent sounded sounded rather British, which he thought was fascinating, considering most people in Insomnia appeared to have differing accents. Maybe it's due to the area of the city he was raised in? Or maybe his family background?

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he and Prompto turned to face the returning trio and both smiled in greeting. Kieran was amused to note that Ignis seemed subtly triumphant over his haul, while Noctis seemed irritated, confirming Kieran's guess as he was grumbling about the heat, and Gladio seemed equally amused by it.

Kieran straightened from his slumped posture over Prompto's shoulder and dipped his head in greeting. "I take it that your harvest was successful?" Judging by the visible bulging from the bag, he presumed that Ignis found a _lot_ of ingredients to use. Which explained the length of time it took for them to get back.

Ignis nodded, appearing pleased at the question, while Noctis groaned irritably in the background. "Indeed. It may have taken a bit of time, but I came up with a few new ideas for recipes that I'm eager to try out. I apologize for the wait."

Kieran waved him off, unconcerned about the wait as it hadn't taken them _that_ long. Less than twenty minutes really. Plus, it was hitting two birds with one stone, as Kieran was able to discern the location of the last nest. "It wasn't any trouble. Depending on how things go in the future, you just may need those ingredients for cooking on the road after this. Still, I appreciate the apology."

Gladio interjected suddenly moving nearer, in the same movement grabbing Noctis around the neck in a brotherly hug, dragging the protesting Prince closer. "So, where to next? Any idea rolling around in that brain of yours, _Professor_?"

 _...I really wish he'd stop that. It's_ _ **annoying**_ _._

Kieran threw the broader man an irritated look, to which Gladio shot back with a wide teasing grin. Earlier, Gladio had noticed each time that Kieran tended to twitch whenever he was referred to by his title in any fashion. While Kieran was proud of his academic achievements, he didn't appreciate the ridiculous reputation and high expectations that came with it. The Shield had picked up on that fact and Gladio had been mercilessly using it to heckle him.

 _Why_ , Kieran had no idea, but it seemed to amuse him every time he reacted irritably to the teasing.

Kieran narrowed his eyes further in a darker look, to which Gladio merely smiled at, much to Kieran's dissatisfaction, before gesturing in the location where he had detected reapertail life signs, replying. "I already have an good idea of where we need to go. If all goes well, your errand will finally be done and over with. _Then_ we can go back to town."

Prompto interjected gleefully, having tucked away his camera into his camera bag on himself during the conversation. "Here's to hoping that Cid will be done with fixing up the Regalia by the time we get back. Plus, we'll no longer be in the red!"

 _Well… they're certain to be in for a surprise when they get back._

Kieran snickered under his breath, amused that the blond was underestimating Cid's ability. He had seen Cid, first-hand, repair a car in worse condition than the Regalia had been and the man still fixed it in a few hours. Especially with Cindy's help. Cid was most likely already relaxing on his lawn chair and waiting for them to come back.

Kieran shook his head in amusement before directing his attention to the sun, shading his eye. Judging by what he could tell by it's position, they still have more than enough time before darkness falls to finish their task and find Dave, even if the quartet didn't know they were going to need to find him yet.

Kieran frowned nervously, hoping events would follow canon and Dave wouldn't get severely hurt. He hoped that Dave would be able to hide and keep himself safe long enough for them to find him. Kieran was well-aware that Dave was a top-tier hunter, but the man was still human and could make a mistake.

That possible mistake was what he worried about the most. Dave had easily taken a spot in his heart due to his compassionate and caring nature, as well as the time they spent together when Dave had been mentoring him. He just had to keep telling himself that Dave would be alright.

 _Dave is a top-tier hunter, so he should be alright. He_ _ **has**_ _to be._

"So, uh, where are we headed after this anyway?" Prompto's curious question broke through Kieran's anxious, circling thoughts as they all walked to the location of the last nest, Kieran turned his attention toward the conversation while keeping an eye out for trouble.

"Nowhere until repairs are done. Then we head for Galdin Quay." Ignis answered patiently, his tone implying that this was actually the first time Prompto had asked this question.

Gladio easily picked up where Ignis left off, voice faintly teasing. "And after that, we hop a boat, and before you know it, loverboy's hitched."

Kieran grinned to himself in amusement, he knew any self-respecting seaman would have happily murdered Gladio for calling their ship a boat. It's like calling a Welsh an Englishman. Guaranteed to end in tragedy and pain on Gladio's part and utter hilarity to anyone watching.

Prompto smiled and nodded in understanding, crossing his arms, a faint sing-song in his tone. "Wait for car repairs, then wedding bells in the air~ Got it!"

Kieran chuckled under his breath, noticing how annoyed Noctis looked at their teasing, but saying nothing but mild grumbles in response. In all honesty, Kieran was curious as to how the Prince was taking the whole thing. He would _never_ have wanted to have gotten married this young, even if he found the right kind of guy he wanted to get married to.

 _Not that I want to get married anytime soon. I'm still very young in this body after all. Besides, it's…_ _ **difficult**_ _to find someone to start a relationship with when ninety-nine percent of people I meet tend to find my research creepy. Not that I had any luck in my past life_ _ **either**_ _. It's really pathetic for a forty-six year old to have never experienced a relationship, or, at the very least, a_ _ **kiss**_ _. Ughhh… I need to stop thinking about this, it's just making me even more depressed about my lack of a love life._

Needless to say, he had been shocked upon discovering that same-sex marriage had been legalized all over Eos centuries ago and held firm to this day. He had found out that particular fact when he had been researching Eos' history early on. While each nation generally held different traditions and what they considered age of majority, Lucis' age of adulthood was eighteen.

Kieran had been stunned to discover that there was a serious lack of prejudice regarding sexuality. Men loving men and women loving women was as common as men loving women and vice versa. It was really all up to your personal preference.

Although, royalty and other old noble families are somewhat restricted in that respect, given the importance placed upon siring or given birth to heirs to continue their _vaulted_ bloodlines. Interestingly enough, royalty _can_ marry a person of the same-sex, but they need to have a surrogate to extend their line through artificial insemination, which has been a recent advancement in technology and has only been available for a short period of time. However, while surrogates were an option, they weren't exactly popular, as some felt it lessened the noble lines somehow.

While eighteen is the age _when_ someone could marry, it's considered more sensible to _wait_ and find out what you want to do with your life before making such an life-changing decision. It's actually more common to marry at your late twenties to early thirties. Ironically, parents trying to push their children into arranged pairings was generally seen in a negative light by most of had actually explained his confusion regarding Lunafreya's unmarried state, given how most royal and noble lines back in ancient history on Earth generally married young.

Plus, given she was the Oracle, he doubted it would be easy for her to find a match given her adoring public. If the public hadn't known about Noctis and Oracle Lunafreya's love for one another, Kieran knew there definitely would have been more of a public outcry. Given how well-loved the Oracle was by the people, even without taking in account the stigma of forcing a marriage.

Even if the Lucis Caelum line was seen in a rather negative light by the refugees of Lucis. Nowadays, one normally only sees arranged marriages between royalty or nobles. It's extremely uncommon otherwise.

Kieran wondered how Noctis was handling it, after all, this would be the first time the two would had seen each other in twelve years. Even if they were in contact through messages, it's completely different compared to meeting in person. While well-aware of Niflheim's future treachery, he couldn't help but _wonder_. Was Noctis happy about his marriage to Lunafreya? Was he getting cold feet? Does he feel overwhelmed? Scared?

Kieran paused as he considered how unusually worried he was, before groaning internally in exasperation. He hadn't expected that the young Prince would have gotten under his skin _this_ fast. Here he was, getting worried about how some kid was taking his engagement to his childhood friend, when he had been _sure_ he had been keeping himself distant.

 _At least Cindy will be happy about it. I can hear it now._

" _Oh Kieran, I'm so glad you're finally gettin' out there and makin' friends! See? I knew you could do it if they tried!"_ Kieran didn't appreciate those words _then_ , and he certainly don't appreciate them **now**. Despite what Cindy and Dave may believe, he was _perfectly fine_ by himself thank you so very much.

…

 _Yeah, I wouldn't believe me either. Ugh, I wish I wasn't so damned_ _ **soft**_ _. I shot myself in the foot the very_ _ **moment**_ _I became concerned about their survival. I'm already getting attached to them._

 _ **Damnit**_ _._

 _This is gonna hurt like a_ _ **bitch**_ _ten years from now._

* * *

Kieran skidded to a stop and spun around after his mind registered the dull thud the last reapertail hitting the ground, panting slightly. He felt the sweat trickling down his back and grumbled in irritation as he concentrated on evening out his breathing. He always hated the gross feeling of drying sweat, but there was no helping it. One would think he'd be used to it after living a desert wasteland for six years. But, sadly, that wasn't the case. Some days he really misses the luxuries of Insomnia, _this_ being one of them.

 _I'd seriously kill_ _for a bath right about now..._

"Nice. Mission complete." Gladio's satisfied voice broke through the slightly fatigued haze enveloping his mind. With all the stamina and combat training he took over the years, he found that it helped his low endurance as long as he closely looked after his health. He even made sure to minimize his movements during fights in order to not overtax himself.

Kieran _loathed_ the fact that his low level of energy had always been a major problem in both of his lives. As a child, he had been made aware that his health was balanced on a scale and the slightest weight could tip the balance. Back on Earth, His parents and teachers ensured he took numerous breaks to ensure he didn't accidently overexert himself. By his second childhood, he already knew what to look out for and was more cautious in looking after himself.

While his health stabilized somewhat as he grew older, his doctors, both times, informed him that he would never have the health or energy of an average person. As an adult, he could go for longer without breaks or rest and he didn't get as sick so easily, but that didn't mean he was _healthy_. Thankfully, the energy drain wasn't _too bad,_ he generally knew when he was starting to run out of energy for the day. Thank the Six, he never ran out of energy whenever he was fight, but then again, adrenaline was the likely cause of that.

Kieran crouched down to slid his daggers back in their sheaths and he grazed the back of his hand against his forehead in a subtle motion that made him seem like he was thinking as was he crouched down.

 _Hm, not too warm, but I really need to stop wearing myself out so much._

Kieran sighed in relief as he placed his hands on his knees and looked down at the nearest reapertail corpse by him. Luckily, they were intact enough for him to collect even more samples. It's funny, any person would think he's nuts to collect samples on the weakest monster out there. But, it was important to keep an eye out for any mutations in the breed and Sania _had_ asked for some samples whenever he ran into them, which made this a prime opportunity. Sania was primarily a biological researcher after all, anything to do with anything living interested her.

Kieran moved to extract the samples he needed, moving on autopilot while he thought. In the past, they had even collaborated on a few projects and shared information. She looked to him as someone she could mess with. Kieran had even been tricked a few times into running errands for her, up until he wised up and stood firm in the face of her crazier schemes, though he still helped her out once in awhile.

While Kieran may research heavily into monsters, it was more of a side thing. _Daemons_ , no matter the other distractions he may indulge in, is his primary focus. Kieran may proclaim himself to be an researcher in monsters, daemons, and magic, he knew he only had gotten interested in the other two due to their connection to daemons.

The cheerful notes of a ringtone broke through his thoughts and Kieran glanced down at his bag blearily in mild surprise, the cellphone inside it being the source of the noise. He had been expecting the call, but surprised she had called _him,_ instead of Noctis. He immediately unlatched the flap of his bag and removed his cellphone from it and answered it, putting it on speaker to let them all hear. " Hello, Cindy."

"Hey, Ky. How goes the huntin'?" Cindy's soft voice came through the connection, sounding as concerned as ever.

Kieran smirked slightly, feeling smug, as their combined efforts had finished the task quicker than he ever would have on his own. Admittedly, that fact stung his pride a bit, but it's better that it was finished and done with before some poor smuck ran into one of the nests and got cornered and eaten. "We just finished actually. I take it that there's something else?"

Kieran watched the quartet coming closer, out of the corner of his eye, the group having easily heard Cindy's voice from his phone and were listening closely. His attention snapped back as Cindy spoke again. "Yeah, we got a bit of a problem. It's another hunt for y'all, but this time, it's for a person."

Kieran shifted his weight slightly, already knowing exactly who the person was, but played along, knowing for another's point-of-view he couldn't possibly know what was going on. But, seeing as there were few hunters in the area, it could only be one person. "It's Dave, isn't it? I heard from Takka that he had been on a hunt himself?"

Cindy made an affirming noise in response, sounding worried. "Yeah, Dave went off for those hunts and we ain't heard from him since. I figure he went and staked out a spot in an old shack nearby."

Kieran hummed in reply, already having an idea of where he look. Giving the quartet a questioning look, nonverbally asking their opinion. Ignis, Gladio, Noctis, and Prompto exchanged looks for a few moments before nodding in acceptance. Kieran grinned in relief at them in unspoken thanks before replying. "Gotcha. We'll find him, don't worry."

Cindy sighed, obviously relieved, clearly Dave's disappearance, no how short he had been missing for, was weighing on her. "Thanks, Ky. I know we can count on you."

After saying his goodbyes, Kieran clicked the end call button and put it back in his bag. Cracking his knuckles, he raised an eyebrow at the foursome questioningly. "As I said to Cindy, I already have a good idea of where he could be hiding, but we'd best check every one of them just in case. Any objections?"

Ignis shook his head, and the others made similar disagreements. "Not at all. It's a sound plan."

Kieran jerked his head over in the distance at the large abandoned building, before walking in that direction. "Let's check there first then. We don't have any time to waste." He heard their footsteps following shortly behind.

"So, you know this guy?" Prompto piped up from next to him, causing Kieran to stare at him questioningly before blinking as he finally registered the question, still feeling dazed and out of sorts. He belatedly noticed that the other three were listening in.

Kieran cleared his throat uncomfortably, wondering what he should say, before speaking. "Yeah, I know him. You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone out here who doesn't know him. Dave is a important person in the hunter community and is well-known to the citizens. He's one of our top hunters and as been around for longer than I've been a hunter, which should tell you a lot. Regardless, he has a bit of a... _guilt complex_. Which causes him a bit of trouble"

Noctis looked quizzically at him, asking. "'Guilt complex'? What's so bad about that?"

Kieran laughed mirthlessly. "You'll understand once you _really_ get to know him. Well, _if_ you intend on sticking around long enough." He ignored the concerned glances being exchanged over his head. While he cared dearly about Dave, he wasn't blind to his faults. He just wished Dave would just _let go_ of his guilt and didn't let it control him. But, he doubted anything he said would have any effect. Nothing he said has worked over the last few years. Hopefully, things will stay true to canon and Noctis and his friends will be able to help.

Kieran carefully scanned the building before going inside, the others following shortly after. From his memories of this time, he knew there was going to be a sabertusk ambush soon, but it never hurt to be too careful. He glanced around and observed the structure.

The building was old, rundown, and predictably decrypt with little furniture. Although, the wooden structure seemed somewhat stable and didn't seem like it was going to start crashing down anytime soon. Still, best to be cautious.

 _Looks can be deceiving, best not linger here too long._

There was little in the building of actual note, apart from the table near the corner with some papers, which he automatically recognized as being bounty papers as they had a familiar print that any hunter worth their salt would recognize on them.

Kieran headed straight over to it and picked the papers up, scanning the bounty information before looking at the notes under them. Noctis nudged Kieran's arm and asked, leaning over curiously. "What's that?"

Kieran glanced over to him and replied. "More than likely these are the papers that Dave was carrying around. See?" He showed Noctis the papers as he shifted through them, speaking the words out loud. "'Mutant Dualhorn Sighting. Codename: Bloodhorn. Characteristics: Red tusks, extremely violent.' Hm, there's a note regarding the outstanding bounty on the sabertusks in the area…but that's fairly usual given their breeding habits and tendency to pop up _everywhere_."

Noctis nodded in understanding just Kieran internally jerked at the scream of _warning_ that suddenly raked up his spine. "Noct!" Ignis suddenly shouting caused them to spin around defensively, their eyes growing wide. Kieran took the split second to curse colorfully in his head at the sight of a sabertusk leaping at them, clearly intent on dealing some damage.

In that single instant, Kieran dropped the papers to the ground as he whipped out his daggers as the sabertusk tried tackling Noctis intent on ripping his throat out, the Prince falling to the ground out of surprise at the sudden ambush, but Kieran swiftly threw one of his knife and lodged it deeply into the creature's neck as Prompto shot it in the head at the same time, diverting its path away from the Prince and its corpse fell to the side heavily.

Intuition still _yowling_ incessantly at him and demanding his immediate attention, Kieran crouched down quickly and dragged Noctis to his feet, before placing his body in a defensive position. Despite the Prince's annoyed protests, he kept Noctis behind him as he performed a quick psychic scan of their surroundings and his eyes narrowed analytically.

He spent the next few seconds absorbing the information, while Prompto also shot the one that was trying to go for Gladio's throat, who was keeping it away using his two-handed broadsword. Ignis being busy with his own opponent, but quickly decimated the beast with his own daggers.

Kieran could sense no fewer than six sabertusks prowling outside the building, waiting for their chance judging by their intent. It was fair-sized pack, but nothing too troublesome. Nonetheless, they needed to be careful. Kieran vaguely heard Prompto move towards them and asking in concern. "Are you okay?"

Noctis nodded with an affirming noise while Kieran quickly moved forward to remove his knife and back away again. He could sense that the pack fully intended on attacking soon and he knew he would be needing it for the fight ahead. Still maintaining his alert position and keeping the Prince behind him, he raised his voice sharply. "Don't let your guard down! There are more coming!"

As if on cue, the sabertusks charged into the building and a few attacked Gladio and Ignis, who were closest to the door. Kieran threw himself at the one closest, ripping open its throat easily and used its momentum to throw it into another causing it to stumble, much to Prompto's advantage, who immediately headshotted them both.

Kieran belatedly felt the rush of blue light and wind that went past him and hissed in annoyance at the headstrong Prince. "Be careful! Sabertusks can easily kill you if you aren't careful!"

After yelling his warning, he focused on keeping the any sabertusks away from the gunner. Thankfully, Gladio, Ignis, and Noctis were close-combat specialists, so he they could take care of themselves, but Prompto was vulnerable as a long-range combatant. That didn't mean he wasn't annoyed about Noctis jumping into things.

 _Little_ _ **brat**_ _._

It ended up being a good split second decision, as one tried leaping at Prompto, only to immediately not live to regret its actions due to Kieran's poisoned knives. Noctis disabled the last one after warping behind it to sever its spine thus stopping movements and left Gladio to decapitate it. Kieran carefully scanned the area once again, this time broadening his range, and sighed in relief, only feeling that sabertusks still a distance away from them and the creatures focused on something else entirely.

Kieran leaned down again to sheath his blades, speaking as he did so. "Excellent work. Especially considering it clearly was an ambush. They had likely scented Dave had been here and were waiting for him. Or anyone coming to look for him. Which means, we're probably close. They wouldn't have been prowling around if the scent had been days old."

Ignis nodded his head in understanding, Noctis and Prompto looked worried, while Gladio was looking outside the building through the cracks in the wood and gestured. "What about the shack over there? If he's close by, then that's where he'd would be, right?"

Kieran nodded sharply, pushing out of his crouch and walked towards the door. "More than likely. But, if he's hurt then that means there are likely sabertusks over there as well. Probably waiting for him to come out or find a way to break in. We need to move."

Kieran stopped momentarily to smack Noctis upside the head, glaring at him irritably before continuing on. "While I can appreciate the initiative, Noctis. Next time, do be more _careful_. If not for yourself, then for your friends' sake."

Not caring to look behind him for an answer, Kieran vaguely heard them following after him, but he remained focused on the shack in the distance. He was crept forward nearly silent as he circled around, while keeping to cover and out of sight. While the quartet were trying their best, he could still clearly hear them.

 _They really need to work on their stealth._

Kieran's eyes narrowed as he pressed his lips into a thin line, watching the sabertusks stalking around the shack, the beasts clearly looking for a way inside. That, was a obvious sign that Dave was inside. Sabertusks wouldn't bother doing that for anything less than cornered prey. That's without taking in account of the signs of recent human tracks.

Ignis suddenly gripped his arm, causing Kieran to look back at the Advisor, raising an eyebrow in question while his eyes sparked irritably. Ignis stared back at him calmly and murmured. "I've got a plan. Noctis can act as bait by warping to the windmill while we attack using the distraction to our advantage. We can easily take out most of them that way."

Kieran gazed hard at Ignis before looking away as he took a deep breath and exhaled, trying to calm himself from acting irrationally. Kieran nodded in answer, biting back any response lest he start snarling. His logic always seemed to go out the window whenever someone he cared for was in trouble.

Kieran _knew_ he couldn't let his emotions get in the way, but the moment he saw those sabertusks surrounding the shack that Dave was keeping safe in, it was like he lost what little calm he had. Neither Ignis or the others deserved any of his vitriol. He was well-aware that Dave had gotten himself into this situation, but, knowing didn't prepare him for the reality of it.

 _I only have_ _ **myself**_ _to blame for this. I shouldn't have gotten so Astrals-damned_ _ **cocky**_ _with my foreknowledge._

The thud of metal striking deep into wood caused him to snap his head upwards, watching Noctis hanging from his sword on the windmill as the beast started gathering below him, waiting for him to drop. Kieran took the cue and launched himself at the nearest sabertusk, the others easily following his lead. They made quick work of the group as Kieran's heartbeat thudded in his ears. Once the last one thumped to the ground, Kieran immediately shot his attention to the shack's door, hearing Dave call out, door opening just as he did so. "Hey, who's out there?"

Kieran ran past the quartet to meet Dave and sighed in relief, his body relaxing upon laying his eyes on Dave. Even knowing in canon that Dave hadn't suffered more than a broken ankle, he couldn't help but fear something else had happened. Seeing the man safe and sound was a immense relief. "Just us. I'm so _glad_ you're _alright_."

Kieran quickly moved to help a surprised Dave limp out of the shack, moving him to settle on the stone floor as he cautiously checked him over for any other injuries. Dave's left leg was obviously causing him difficulties, but he didn't injured anywhere else, apart from some scratches and bruises.

Thankfully, as he pressed down, he discovered the only injuries he had were just bruises and he found no sign of any broken bones. Dualhorns and sabertusks could easily snap human bones given the chance. It wasn't that he thought Dave was incompetent, but _he_ still could have been taken off-guard.

Dave stared back at Kieran in surprise, before smiling at Kieran's typical fussing, waiting patiently for him to finish before looking over his shoulder at the foursome behind him in askance.

Gladio took charge and greeted Dave warmly, appearing as friendly as ever. "The man of the hour. Dave, right? We've been looking for you."

Dave winced, looking guilty and clearly pained by his injury, causing Kieran to immediately shift his attention to the obvious injury. "Didn't mean to cause y'all any trouble. Been stuck here on account of my sprained ankle."

His words caused Kieran to flick him in the head and gave him a _look_ , staring him down and nonverbally demanding that he stop right there. To which Dave replied with an apologetic look and settled back down patiently for him to finish. Kieran moved to shift his left pant leg and sock out of the way and assess the injury, feeling it to make sure it really was just a sprained ankle.

While clearly swollen by the effort it took to drag himself into the shack and away from wherever his hunts had taken him, it wasn't that bad. Kieran sighed in relief, seeing it was exactly that, reaching into his bag to grab a potion. Dave immediately protests at his action. "Hey now. No need to be wastin' a potion on a sprained ankle. I'll be right as rain in a few hours."

Kieran just _glared_ at him, eyes fierce as he kept eye contact and forced himself to speak evenly, furious that Dave was even saying _that_. "I'm not wasting _anything_. Potions are _meant_ to be used and I'm using it to help a good friend who is clearly in _pain_. So, do us all a favor, and tell your guilt complex to _shut the_ _ **hell up**_."

His words were in a forced calm, the emphasis was telling in how pissed off he was. Underneath the fierceness was a subtle undertone of worry and residual fear and it was evident to Dave. The older hunter winced, sending Kieran another apologetic look, which he ignored as he focused on wrapping the injury with bandages he had removed from his bag.

Kieran belatedly heard amused snickering from behind him and puzzled over that reaction before ignoring it. They probably just found it funny to see him bossing around Dave and seeing the man listen to him. He supposed it would be funny to see a full-grown man get bossed around by a young boy barely in his twenties.

Dave accepted the potion given to him and knocked it back. Kieran smiled in satisfaction at the immediate effect, already seeing the difference as the tense lines in Dave's shoulders loosened and Kieran pushed off the ground and got back up after smoothing the clothing back into place. Dave spoke after a few moments of silence, expression visibly concerned about something. "Kieran, there was something funny about them varmints. I gave 'em hell, but couldn't finish the job. Still one mean mutt about."

Kieran crossed his arms, eyebrow ticking up displaying his curiosity. "I admit, surprised to hear you say that. You don't normally get taken by surprise like that. What happened?"

Dave gave a dryly pointed look to his leg in answer. "Like I said, sprained my ankle. But, you should know, it was different from other Bloodhorns that we've seen. I've been huntin' for years, but I ain't never seen Bloodhorns with tusks _that_ red. I reckon it's the alpha of its herd. Whaddaya say? Put that puppy to rest for me?"

Kieran nodded sharply, letting his arms fall to his sides. "Don't worry about it, Dave. I can handle it. Besides, before I left Hammerhead, I heard you were taking on the hunt, so I was already intending on asking if I could take some samples from it. This just simplifies things. Where'd you last see it?"

Dave gave the coordinates as Kieran re-checked his mental map of the area and marked it before nodded in understanding. "Got it. Rest up here for a bit before getting back to Hammerhead. The potion won't take long in fixing the damage. So, you'll be up and about in no time."

Kieran turned to the quartet, hesitating before speaking. "I'd hate to trouble you all, but do you mind escorting Dave back? I don't want him out on his own. Besides, you guys already finished your task, anything beyond this isn't your concern."

Kieran internally winced after he said that, realizing how that could be taken, but refused to back down. Even knowing he sounded like a complete asshat, they really didn't need to stay here any longer, besides, as long they knew someone was taking care of it, they could go on their merry way. Behind him, he could hear Dave protesting at requiring an escort, Kieran could practically hear his pride stinging, having to be escorted back by a bunch of rookies.

Well, Dave could just suck it up. He wasn't about to allow Dave to endanger himself in such a fashion when he was already hurt. Oddly enough, the boys didn't seem offended at all, in fact, they seemed strangely amused by his words. Kieran frowned in confusion as he watched the exchange amused looks with each other, but kept his silence as Noctis spoke up.

Noctis grinned at him. "Nope. Sorry, but we still need to hold up our end of the deal."

 _What? What deal?_

Kieran blinked in confusion, feeling out of sorts. "What on _Eos_ are you _talking_ about-" Kieran stopped at Noctis holding his hand up, the gesture causing him to go silent.

Prompto piped up cheerily, looking just as amused by Kieran's bafflement. "Cindy asked us to watch out for you. Remember?"

Ignis nodded, picking up where the gunner left off. "We can't very well keep our promise if we abandoned you now."

Gladio smirked at him. "I wonder how strong this Bloodhorn Alpha is. Should be a good challenge for us."

Kieran gazed wide-eyed back at them, bewildered by the sudden show of solidarity against him. His gaze darted between the four boys, feeling increasingly off-balance and it was starting to frighten him. Why were they so invested in wanting to help?

Kieran jerked sharply at feeling Dave's hand graze his elbow behind him and causing him to look back. He flushed brightly, feeling embarrassed that his flustered state had him acting like some paranoid fool. He was usually more composed than this...

Dave smiled reassuringly at him. "I'll be fine, Ky. I'd feel better if I knew you'd have back up against that beast."

 _What. No, seriously, what the heck just happened here?_

"..." Kieran's shoulders slumped in confusion as he stared unsurely back at the quartet for a few long moments, before nodding dazedly, his words coming out quiet. "...A-Alright. I guess… it'll be fine?"

He wondered what on Eos could have caused the change in the group. He would have thought they'd be glad to get back to Hammerhead as soon as possible. Did they think he couldn't handle one Bloodhorn by himself? Admittedly, it was a common assumption due to his body type, as he was lean enough that most people tended to underestimate him. But, _surely_ , as they saw during the previous fights that he could handle himself, right?

Kieran forcefully shook himself out of his dazed confusion, remembering why he had volunteered to take the beast on in the first place. Still unwilling to leave the man, but knowing he needed to. He turned back again to Dave, demanding firmly. "But, you'd better get right back to Hammerhead, alright? That's my condition."

Dave laughed softly, nodding in agreement at his term, waving Kieran off. "Alright, alright. I _promise_. Now, get going."

Kieran huffed in amusement before obeying, stalking off in the direction he knew was correct, the others following after. He still felt shaken by the sudden turn of events. Even being emotionally blackmailed by Cindy hadn't had this effect. He wondered if it was because she wasn't there as a buffer?

Kieran looked at the sky worriedly as it was drawing close to night time and that Bloodhorn was still a good distance away still. He could easily make his way through the night by himself, but it wouldn't be smart, seeing as the quartet would get ripped to shreds by the daemons. Adding to the fact, it was just plain dangerous in near darkness when you couldn't see where you were going.

Ignis tapping his shoulder snapped him out of his thoughts and when he glanced over questioningly, Ignis suggested firmly. "It would be wise to rest up before we set out."

"I agree." Kieran hummed in affirmation, trying to keep up his mask of false confidence. "It's getting far too late. We need to find a Haven before we all get caught out by daemons. C'mon. I know one close by."

"Over there. Thankfully, we were already close by a Haven." Kieran sharply switched directions, gesturing towards the enclosed area in the distance that was painted with oddly white, to them, markings that appeared to almost glow in the ending daylight. The area was completely flat and surrounded by high cliffs with a short winding path up to the Haven.

Ignis and Gladio appeared to quietly confer for a few moments as they followed, Kieran was close enough to hear them debating the viability to defending such a location, which was smart, even though daemons would get repelled by the sigils of the Haven, the same can't be said for monsters or… _opportunistic_ people.

Although, according to Kimya, there was minor suggestion magic intertwined with the markings that urged monsters to ignore the location. It wasn't a sure thing though so watches would need to be a said, Ignis and Gladio didn't seem to care he could clearly hear what they were saying.

Noctis and Prompto, Kieran noticed, seemed to be taking the time to discuss...King's Knight? The seemed be be discussing something about a boss fight. He had heard of the game often enough and tried it out a few times, but hadn't really cared to get into it. His research tended to take up most of his attention.

Kieran yawned tiredly, eyelids slipping to half-mast as he listened to the younger two debate different ways that they should tackle the boss. Having that late night and using up his limited energy during the fights today really tired him out. He grumbled in annoyance at his weakness.

"Excellent. Let's move on then, shall we? I'm sure we're all eager to settle in for the day." His drifting attention snapped back as Ignis began speaking, he momentarily felt embarrassed by his lapse in attention, but blamed his exhaustion. Biting his lip to wake himself up, Kieran hummed in reply and took that as his cue to get moving, hearing the others start their trek to the Haven as well.

Kieran wasn't too surprised when Gladio spoke up as they walked, as the group was proven to be particularly chatty, the large man sounded impressed. "The hunters are really out in full force around here, huh?"

Kieran smiled tiredly at him, feeling oddly proud about his appreciation over the hunters and liking that Gladio noticed their hard work. "Yeah, recruitment efforts have gone through the roof lately. Sadly, that means there's no shortage of idiots that believe once they become a hunter that they can take on high-risk hunts with no problem. Hopefully, that mindset will get knocked fast by their mentors."

Prompto interjected curiously, glancing to the side at Kieran, to which he blinked at the gunner curiously. "So, they're like a new Crownsguard or something?"

Kieran shook his head negatively before elaborating. "Hunters operate primarily as a civilian outfit, but they _are_ similar."

As Crownsguard occasionally came around to help train with hunters, it lead to the hunters having a more stable combat style, which leads to a higher survival rate. Despite what most Insomnians may say, the Hunter HQ and Crownsguard got along just fine. Sure, there is the occasional hotshot that shoots off his or her mouth, but they tend to get taken down a few notches pretty quickly.

Gladio nodded, tilting his head thoughtfully. "They've definitely seen a lot more action than we have."

Kieran blinked at that, haven't been expecting the man to be so humble about it and immediately chastised himself. He really needed to stop letting assumptions control his judgement and stop being so uncharitable about it.

Prompto floundered, visibly searching for a new topic, before asking quizzically. "Uh… is it cool that we rock Crownsguard outfits?"

Kieran tilted his head as he considered the question. While he may find the whole skull theme a smidge… _morbid_ , he had seen worse designs. Personally, he thought having a skull as an insignia was either a taunt at death or an awareness towards their own mortality and acceptance of it. Kieran shrugged. "I don't really have an opinion on it, per say. Wear what you like."

Noctis spoke up, sounding tired as well but clearly alert given his immediate response, reassuring his friend. "Be worse not to. They made 'em especially for us."

Gladio adding onto that statement, warming to the conversation. "They even got a sweet insignia on 'em."

Kieran cast the muscled man a doubtful look before looking away. To each their own, he supposed. No accounting for taste either. Not that he can actually say anything, as he tended to wear all black which tended to make him seem grim and somber. Cindy even complained about his taste in colors several times. Or lack thereof as she called it.

Ignis affirmed the other's opinions. "In the Crownsguard, your attire identifies you. So wear it with pride."

Kieran laughed under his breath, adding his own two cents. "Agreed. Being apart of the Crownsguard is something you can be proud of, as I hear it's quite the honor. Whether you're apart of the Hunters or Crownsguard, it's something you can take pride in. Besides, the Crownsguard have worked with Hunters in the past and we've gotten along just fine."

Kieran sighed in relief after they finished climbing up the path to the wide open semi-flat space of the Haven, privately glad that they had gotten to the place with time to spare and with no other monster ambushes. Still, he couldn't quite relax yet, as they still needed to set up camp and an rotation for watch shifts.

Ignis glanced around the area taking it in analytically before humming in approval and turned towards Noctis. "Noct, if you would?"

Kieran tilted his head curiously, watching the Prince in fascination as he summoned a familiar flash of blue light. Seeing as he had only seen it before in combat, he took the time to study it and he blinked in surprise, as it faded away to reveal camping supplies appeared on the ground in front of him. Said supplies including packaged food and ingredients still in paper bags, a tent, cooking supplies, chairs, and various other useful camping items.

Kieran made an impressed sound, feeling childishly excited by the show of magic, turning to Noctis. "I thought the Lucis Caelum's magic can only be used to summon weapons?"

Noctis smirked, looking smug. "Nah, I can stick all kinds of stuff in it. Whatever I need. I just need to think about what I need to pull from it."

Kieran nodded in understanding, his fatigue slipping away as his brain buzzed in excitement at this new information. "I don't know much about the magic specific to your family, but that makes sense that it would respond to the will of it's user. You must have put all this equipment away when you arrived at Hammerhead, correct?"

Gladio grinned, crouching down and sorting through their equipment to grab the tent. "Good guess. Now, let's get started."

* * *

Kieran sighed upon dropping onto the ground to sit cross-legged in front of the fire and let himself rest after finishing up with helping Ignis set up the cooking equipment. Setting up camp had been easy enough, but the day had been a long one and he was feeling rightfully exhausted.

Gladio, Noctis, and Prompto having finished their own tasks and were resting as well. Prompto and Noctis seemed to be playfully arguing over their phones about something while Gladio was reading a book he had appeared to have gotten out of nowhere.

The enticing smell of the Veggie Medley Stew that Ignis was making made Kieran groan lowly as it was causing his stomach to growl and ache in hunger. Breakfast at Takka's had been so long ago and he was really feeling the hunger pangs. Judging by the scent and the noises that Ignis was making, it was just about done.

Kieran blinked dazedly, hearing Ignis call out the completion of their meal, almost unwilling to move, but dragged himself up, knowing he needed to eat or risk having low energy tomorrow. To his tired amusement, he heard Noctis grumble out the vegetables and Ignis chastising him about it. In contrast, Gladio and Prompto ate without complaint. Taking a sip of the broth, Kieran froze in complete stillness, feeling his tastebuds practically _scream_ with joy.

 _This… is without a doubt, the_ _ **best**_ _meal I have ever tasted in my entire existence._

"...Mm~" Kieran closed his eyes in pure enjoyment of the flavours and groaned lowly in appreciation. Completely blocking everything out, he focused entirely on consuming his delicious meal. Even if it was a veggie stew, it tasted amazing. How long was that he tasted a meal this good?

Mentally grumbling when he realized he finished it far too quickly, he looked back up to see the stunned faces of his companions and stared back in confusion. "...What?" Prompto and Noctis starting breaking out laughing and Gladio looked back visibly amused and started snickering. Kieran glared irritably, wondering why they were laughing and starting to feel embarrassed without knowing why.

Ignis smoothly intervened before he could take more _drastic_ measures and distracted him. The ash-blond man was smiling slightly as he spoke. "I had no idea you liked vegetables _that_ much, Kieran."

Kieran huffed, annoyed at the teasing, but replied bluntly. "It isn't that, I like vegetables just fine. I just wasn't expecting your cooking to taste that amazing."

Kieran blinked at seeing Ignis look even _more_ pleased than he already was, his smile growing. "Thank you for the compliment."

Visibly confused, Kieran turned back and glared at the still laughing trio in renewed annoyance. He didn't know what was so funny. He was just enjoying a good meal. Kieran looked back at Ignis hopefully, glancing at his bowl in askance. Ignis smiled again and gestured towards the pot. The unspoken _help yourself_ causing Kieran to beam happily and do just that.

"Sooo… what's so special about this Bloodhorn anyway. Dave called it an alpha? And why did you want to find it that badly?" Prompto's voice broke through his happy haze.

Kieran froze mid-action in scooping up some of the stew, wondering how he should answer. It wasn't like his interest in the Bloodhorn Alpha was a secret and he had no problems talking about his job, but he knew this would be his best chance to truly explain his reasoning and say sorry, he found himself feeling unusually anxious about it, even more so than when he usually had to apologize. Kieran turned around to face them and sat back down, carefully balancing the bowl in his hands as to not spill its contents.

"...That, is going to take some explaining. Would you rather hear the short or long version? Fair warning: the long version is going to take a lot of explaining." Kieran asked faux casually, taking comfort in the familiar topic he mustered up his courage in preparation for his apology.

"Long version, if you please." Ignis spoke up, nodding encouragingly at Kieran.

Kieran hummed thoughtfully, carefully considering what he should say. "You'll need some background information first...to speak plainly, my research goes directly to the Crownsguard and Kingsglaives to better fight against Niflheim, as well as to better equip the Hunters. I'm sure you're all well-aware of Niflheim's tendency to use daemons as their attack dogs, or rather they let the daemons loose against the Kingsglaive and don't give a damn if their soldiers die in the process. Regardless, I usually send the information to a hunter courier, who then gives it to a Crownsguard or Glaive, and _then_ it gets handed over to their leaders."

Seeing their surprised understanding, Kieran continued nervously, tapping his fingers against the smooth, warm surface of his bowl. "That information gives the Glaives an edge to utilize the daemons' weaknesses against them and it's been essential in pushing back Niflheim time and time again. As daemons remain the Niffs primary form of attack, as we increase our knowledge about daemons, we keep that edge."

Kieran noticed them straightening and twitched nervously, but focused on keeping his words steady. "Knowing that importance, I do my best to search out any possible rumors regarding strange or powerful daemons and hunt them down. I try and do anything in my ability to ensure Lucis doesn't lose our edge against the Empire."

Gladio interjected, looking serious. "But, what does that have to do with the Bloodhorn?"

Kieran answered steadily, focusing on the subject to distract himself. "We have been given reason to believe that daemons are infecting monsters and animals in new and strange ways, causing mutations that an everyday citizen wouldn't normally see. I have been carefully tracking down each mutation I can find and studying them. They are often characterized by emitting a strange red aura and are more aggressive than an average member of its species."

Ignis breathed sharply. "You believe that these… _mutations_ are daemon-influenced?"

Kieran nodded. "Yes. It's why it's so important to track down each one and eliminate them even if my motivations weren't urged by my research."

Kieran bit his lip as he hesitated, feeling his back stiffen nervously as tried getting the words past choked up feeling in his throat, feeling scared as he lifted his head up to look them all in the eye, particularly Noctis. "...That was why I appeared so… _aggravated_ earlier. I wanted to find it as quickly as possible and why I had no desire to play guide for you all. I am sorry for my harsh words, I thought acting as nasty as I did would cause you all to decline Cindy's offer and leave me to carry out my business. Still, that's no excuse for my rude behavior…"

Prompto and Noctis blinked at him in surprise as they absorbed his explanation while Ignis and Gladio nodded in understanding. Kieran's back started slowly untensing from the stress. Talking about it feeling like pus draining from a wound he didn't know was there. Even if he felt terribly vulnerable about letting himself be so open about it.

Kieran clenched his fists on his thighs and stared at the ground, feeling the familiar burn of tears welling up and tried to futily hold them back. "...It's why I reacted so badly to Noctis' question on why I was risking my life for my research. I have a _responsibility_ to not only the civilians and hunters of Lucis, but towards the Crownsguard and Kingsglaive as well. They _rely_ on the information I pass them. Even so… No matter how fast I research and spread the information, there are always at least a few people who _die_ due to the lack of information. Or they get surprised by a newfound mutation."

Kieran looked back up and kept eye contact with a surprised Noctis, embarrassed when he felt the tears start to fall and leave wet tracks despite his efforts to remain calm. "I constantly feel worry and guilt about those I fail to help… so, saying I should… _give up_ and pass it on to _someone else_ when this is my responsibility… it made me _furious_. ...I took my anger over my... _weakness_ out on you and I shouldn't have. I am sorry."

Kieran snapped his gaze towards the ground again, bowing his head as the wet droplets coming from his eyes at an increased pace and waited fearfully for Noctis' answer to his apology. He _hated_ feeling so vulnerable with people he barely knew, but… Noctis _deserved_ his honesty for his earlier actions.

A thump on the ground next to him caused him to twitch, but he refused to look at the source of the noise, preferring to stare stubbornly at his trembling, clenched fists. He winced inwardly, he hadn't even realized he had been _shaking_ , he must look so _pathetic_. Crying and trembling awaiting the Prince's condemnation. _Especially_ when he admitted his pitiful reasons for his over emotional words.

A light touch against his shoulder caused him to flinch and glanced upwards warily through his hair. He barely restrained himself from jerking backwards when he realized that _Noctis_ was sitting barely an inch from him and… _he was_ **smiling**?

The light grip firmed as Noctis, still smiling, clasped his shoulder and spoke. "Hey… it's _alright_. I already forgave you when you apologized the first time. This isn't necessary."

Kieran shook his head stubbornly, nearly knocking Noctis' hand from his shoulder, unable to believe he was actually forgiving him. "It is! I acted like a complete _asshole_ simply because I was afraid of being… _inconvenienced._ "

He flinched inwardly at the blatant _lie_ , knowing he could _never_ apologize that he had been _afraid_ because of his foreknowledge and not wanting to get involved because he knew what was going to happen in the future and wanted to spare himself the pain of getting attached. Even if said plan failed utterly and completely. But this… _this_ he _could_ say he was sorry for.

Kieran stilled in surprise, shocked at Noctis suddenly wrapping his arm around his shoulders in a one-armed hug. The warmth of the close contact made him subconsciously relax despite himself. His shocked gaze snapped to Noctis, who smirked teasingly. " _Wow_. Who would have guessed that such a _scary_ guy like you, could be so adorably stubborn~?"

Kieran _froze_ before sending the Prince a glare, feeling a blush burn across his face at the blatant invasion of his personal space, indignant over Noctis' words. "I'm not!"

Noctis grinned mockingly, egging the researcher on. " _Ohh_ _really?_ "

Kieran growled irritably, getting right up in the Prince's amused face, feeling his blush increase in his strange embarrassment and anger. "I'm twenty-one years old! I'm not _adorable."_

Kieran spared a moment to ponder _why_ he was feeling so mortified over Noctis calling him adorable. He _never_ reacted like this when Cindy or Dave called him cute. For some strange reason they always said that whenever he blabbered on about his research and never seemed inclined to stop him when he _really_ got going.

"There you are." Noctis' smile suddenly turned less teasing and more real. " I was wondering if we lost the real you under all that guilt. Seriously Kieran, you have _issues_."

 _Huh?_

Kieran stared eyes wide as he stilled on his knees, having not remembering when he got up, before quickly leaning back. He flushed again and hide his face, this time in shame over losing his cool at the slightest provocation. The light laughter from the boy beside him caused him to groan lowly.

"Group hug!" Prompto shouted out of nowhere and slammed into both of them, knocking them to the hard ground. Kieran winced painfully from his face-down position, as Prompto and Noctis started messing around above him, and struggled to squeeze out from under them, groaning softly. " _Ow_."

Kieran flushed brightly as a snickering Gladio sauntered over to help him while Ignis shook his head in exasperation, belatedly realizing that the other three had witnessed his _entire_ emotional fit. Subtly wincing as Gladio dragged him out, feeling the stinging ache from where Prompto and Noctis' bony elbows had landed when they fell. Kieran turned to glare at the bickering duo and wrenched himself from Gladio's loose grip to tackle Noctis and Prompto, enacting his revenge. Much to his satisfaction, he felt dual yelps, only to immediately regret it, as they dragged him into their horseplay.

 _Owww. I think I have some bruises now._

* * *

 _ **Ow**_ _._

 _Stupid frigging little_ _ **shits**_ _._

 _I really_ _ **did**_ _get bruises from that fall. And I shouldn't have taken revenge so… immaturely._

 _Still. I can appreciate the intent behind Prompto's actions, he was obviously trying to lighten things up… even if the aftermath wasn't so great. I admit… I didn't expect Noctis to pull something like that or that I would react so readily to his taunting._

 _ **Ugh**_ _._

 _In hindsight, it was stupidly obvious what he was trying to do and he had been trying to cheer me up in his own way by pissing me off. It was kinda… sweet actually. I still feel guilty about my earlier actions, but… it feels lessened now. I feel a_ _ **lot**_ _better now that I've properly apologized, even if I wish I hadn't cried in front of them._ _ **Again**_ _. Seriously, crying in front of them the first time was bad enough._

 _I reiterate, I_ _ **hate**_ _it when my emotions overwhelm me to the point I get so upset I start bawling. It happens every time too! I cry when I'm sad, angry, embarrassed, or even when I'm happy! It's stupid! I mean, I'm not ashamed that I cry, but my emotions take over to me to the point where I'm so damn vulnerable that I cry in front of strangers… although, I suppose the boys aren't really strangers given how I know them?_

… _I'm… surprised that they all didn't treat me differently afterwards… well, I mean, they_ _ **did**_ _, but it's not in a negative way. They seem… more open with me now? Especially Ignis and Gladio, they kept drawing me into conversations as we continued eating and they kept asking questions about me and my research, where I've traveled, my experiences and all that._

 _I don't get it… I sobbed like a child in front of them when I was trying to apologize and they aren't bothered by how emotionally unstable I am? Aren't they worried that I'm mentally unstable? I damn well know I am a bit screwed up in the head, because you can't_ _ **die**_ _and have to adjust to your second chance at living without having at_ _ **least**_ _a few screws loose. But, they don't seem particularly bothered by it?_

 _What gives?_ _ **Seriously**_ _._

 _I mean, it's put off people before with how emotional I can be and growing up for the second time hasn't changed that part about me at all. Even in my past life at twenty-five, I could get so upset I'd start feeling choked up and start crying, no matter how hard I tried to control myself. And that hasn't changed at all, even though I'm mentally forty-six. You'd think I would have more control over my emotions by now, if anything, I think it's gotten_ _ **worse**_ _._

 _What makes these boys so_ _ **damn**_ _different? Why are they so accepting after seeing me like_ _ **that**_ _. I mean, I at least expected some comments from Gladio, at the very least, about how I shouldn't cry like that because I'm a boy. It wouldn't be the first time someone has told chastised me for weeping so easily. Although, I never understood that, even if I'm a boy, I'm still human._

 _Isn't it human to cry? I know I tend to go overboard, but… it isn't that unusual, right? Besides, crying is actually good for your body, or so I hear. Something about it being a stress response to getting overwhelmed… by… stress. … Is that why I cry so damn often? Because I'm stressed? I mean, I know I tend to go a bit overboard. And get injured a lot and everyone yells at me for it. And I tend to give myself self-imposed deadlines with my research._

 _..._ _ **Nope**_ _, not gonna think about it. Even if that is true, I can't do anything about it. My mental health_ _ **pales**_ _in comparison to the lives I can save. Even if I ruin myself in the process._

 _Regardless, I'm glad that they aren't pitying me or anything. Even_ _ **Cindy**_ _used to treat me like fragile china for a while until I got fed up and told her to stop. Now, she just finds it cute whenever I get overwhelmed and start crying._ _ **Especially**_ _, when she drags me in for a movie night and she makes me watch emotional movies. I love you, Cindy, like a older sister I never had, but could you stop it with all the romance movies..._

 _Anyway, today has been chock full of surprises. First, the weird picture taking thing with Prompto, then Gladio doing his damnedest to tease me with_ _ **stupid**_ _nicknames, then saving Dave before suffering a mutiny from those_ _ **idiots**_ _, and now_ _ **this**_ _. I know it's stupid and I'm overthinking things, … I can't help but hope that we may become friends? I mean, given their actions… wouldn't that mean that they're warming up to me and my shitty personality?_

 _Logically, I know I'm probably overestimating what I've noticed, but I can hope, right? Then again, if wishes were poppy, then we'd all be dreaming right now. I honestly thought this moronically hopeful side of myself had died in my first life. It look like I just buried it so deep down I forgot it was there._

 _But..._

 _I'm glad I didn't manage to get rid of it. Or else I never would have created the bonds I have with Cindy, Dave, Kimya, and the others. I may have interacted with some rather…_ _ **jerkish**_ _people over the course of my life that made me doubt my worth and whether I can really be a good judge of character, but I_ _ **know**_ _that not everyone is so cruel and willing to jerk me around like that._

 _At least, I can be assured that Noctis, Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto wouldn't do that. They are_ _ **far**_ _too openly honest and I can appreciate that. I don't have constantly worry about their motives. Still, I learned a valuable life lesson over the years, you can't just trust people unreservedly. They have to_ _ **earn**_ _it. And this group is well on their way to gaining it… despite my best efforts to the contrary in driving them off in the beginning. Ah, well, I suppose that's one more regret to add to the list. I've done so many stupid things over the years, so, one more won't matter._

 _But, I need to be more serious about this entry. I can't keep moaning about my mistakes and my insecurity about the boys. To start off since I wrote my last entry, Cindy easily managed to emotionally blackmail me into playing tour guide and hunting mentor for this royal entourage and it's been a_ _ **interesting**_ _experience._

 _We exterminated the monsters that both Cid and Takka needed taken down. Despite the boys' inexperience in fighting monsters, they held up well. Cindy called us to rescue Dave after we finished off the last nest of reapertails. I'm not surprised, she has always had good timing. I'm a bit annoyed with myself and Dave though. I'm likely expecting too much from him, but he really should have been more careful. And I really should have kept a tighter hold on my emotions. It's embarrassing that I needed a guy younger than me to stop from charging in recklessly. Still, I appreciate the intervention. But, I definitely didn't enjoy that…_ _ **mutiny**_ _afterwards._

 _Currently, we have set up camp for the night and we'll be going after that Bloodhorn Alpha tomorrow morning. I'm honestly tempted to just stay up all night and leave before dawn. But, I can't. I have a responsibility to these kids. So long as we are traveling together I need to watch out for them and make sure they don't get themselves killed._

… _So much has already happened and can hardly believe it's real. I know I've already said it, but I think it needs to be repeated. I really didn't expect this when I woke up this morning._

… _I… honestly didn't expect them to warm up to me so quickly. I didn't expect Prompto to be so sweet and honest with me. I didn't expect for Noctis to be so adorable in his fishing obsession or that I would start to care about him. I definitely didn't expect for Gladio to treat me so much like an comrade, even if the teasing is something I could have lived without. Even Ignis treating me like an equal is surprising._

 _What did I do to deserve such regard?_

 _Is it bad that I have such low expectations?_

 _..._ _ **Probably**_ _._

 _Even seeing as I wasn't entirely…_ _ **truthful**_ _with them earlier. It's true that I suspect that the mutations are possibly caused by daemons. But, it's equally possibly it's from residual taint from the Starscourge. Even if they don't know it's the Scourge. From what I've hearing about these 'mysterious' outbreaks of some sort of plague, it's obviously the Scourge._

 _Regardless, ordinary people have no idea about it and assume that daemons are all that's left of it. Everyone knows not to let yourself get injured or touched by a daemon or else you'll die. Well,_ _that's the common assumption anyway. Most don't know about the very real reality of slowly turning into a daemon if you get tainted._

 _Which... I suppose is for the best. No need to cause mass hysteria after all. Thankfully, the Oracle is able to help heal them or the Scourge would have probably overrun us already. Honestly, the Oracle's Light is why this world hasn't gotten completely overrun by darkness already._

 _Eh…_

 _Here I am, rambling on whatever topic my mind catches. I am serious though. I'm surprised Ignis and Gladio haven't gotten more suspicious about me given how easily I've been able to find those nests. Or how I know I'm going in the right direction. Maybe they assume I'm tracking them through visual disturbances in the area? They are partially right, I did go to the trouble of physically tracking them. I_ _ **did**_ _go to the trouble of making it seem that I'm just being overly paranoid. Don't go borrowing trouble where there is none, right?Besides, as long as I keep it hidden I won't need to admit to_ _**anything**_ _._

 _It's not like I can reveal the actual reason why. Worst case scenario, I'll be called insane and shuffled off to some asylum. Best case, I'll just be called delusional and they go on their merry way. Who knows whether they believe in reincarnation or not. And that's_ _ **without**_ _going into the obvious conundrum of my Intuition. I mean,_ _ **really**_ _? Who would be stupid enough to believe I have a psychic ability? Once that allows me to sense malicious intent, at that. I'll be lucky if they just assume I'm a con artist or something._

 _Yeah,_ _ **Intuition**_ _, I know,_ _ **total**_ _knock-off from Katekyo Hitman Reborn, right?_

 _I believe I've had this ability from birth. Even after I recovered my past memories, my Intuition has always felt like another one of the five senses. It feels… natural to me. No matter how painful it feel at times. I could always sense danger no matter how small or large. It wasn't until a couple years later when I started teaching myself how to control it through trial and error. I eventually figured out how to dampen it when it gets too painful or annoying. Or direct it in specific ways. Like I did with those reapertails and sabertusks earlier._

 _At a young age, without fail, it always rose to the surface whenever I risked getting hurt. Whether in a construction accident, some bully getting a bit too physical, or some_ _ **asshole**_ _not obeying driving laws, I would get this…_ _ **warning**_ _that says I should move this way or that. You know the feeling you get when you feel like something bad is going happen? That you should leave an area because something bad is going to happen?_

 _It's kinda like that, just more…_ _ **intense**_ _. And_ _ **descriptive**_ _. My Intuition was rather weak at first, but it slowly grew in strength as I grew older. Like… exercising a muscle, I suppose? The more I used it, the more powerful it got. At that point, learning how to lessen the effects of each warning became necessary. It wasn't so bad at first, just some tingle at the base of my skull and a…_ _ **murmuring**_ _that told me things that were about to be an imminent threat to myself._

 _It grew to the point that whenever I meet someone I can automatically analyse how much a danger someone or something is to me and the feelings I would get became more of a spark than a tingle or rarely a shock. The greater the danger, the more_ _ **severe**_ _the warning. The most severe warnings I've gotten were the most painful._

 _Needless to say, meeting King Regis for the first time was extremely nerve wracking. Even though he didn't mean me any harm, his aura of power coming from him was…_ _ **startling**_ _to say the least. It was like an intense pressure. An_ _**encompassing**_ _force that felt like it would strike down at the slightest hint of threat. But, calm and relaxed at the same time. It felt_ _ **warm,**_ _like a thick cloak on your shoulders that you would wear during a storm and would trust to keep away the cold bite._ _ **Protective**_ _, like a lion guarding his pride from any and all attacks and saying it would annihilate the enemy with extreme prejudice. And throughout it all, the feeling of electricity coursing in his aura, making it feel like my hair was standing on an end._

 _That was… the beginning of my respect for our King. I thought, someone who felt like_ _ **that**_ _, surely they are worth respecting? Well, that, and I sort of respected him for his self-sacrificial actions in the movie and game. Lord Amicitia and the King's other advisors had a similar yet individual feel to them._

 _Haha… that feeling nearly drove me to my knees… It was just so_ _ **intense**_ _. Thankfully, I didn't embarrass myself then. I even felt a similar sensation of power from Noctis and his friends when they arrived in Hammerhead. but it had been severely lessened and I didn't notice until later._

 _Noctis feels… smaller somehow. The encompassing and protective feel is there, but it feels_ _ **different**_ _. He feels akin to a strong blizzard, powerful enough to slowly kill you if unprepared and its wind strong enough to to bite at and strip the skin from your muscle and bones. And yet, gentle enough to tousle your hair in a cold, wintery day._ _ **Warm**_ _,_ _like sitting inside your house by the fire and drinking hot cocoa amidst a storm._

 _Ugh. I sound so damned flowery, but that's the best way I can describe how they feel to me._

… _This is embarrassing to admit, but I…_ _ **would**_ _have sensed them coming and gotten out the hell out of dodge if I hadn't deliberately blocked off most of my Intuition. You see, uh, I_ _ **had**_ _been intending on leaving much earlier and so I dampened my ability in preparation for when I left. Going into a dangerous area pretty much sets off my Intuition like a fireworks show and is incredibly distracting when you're trying to concentrate on research._

 _Admittedly, it's really stupid seeing as I rely on my Intuition to keep me out of trouble, but it's a needed risk. But, it also had a dual purpose in blocking out the agonizing warning I have been feeling since the night of May 4th. It woke up that night, caught off-guard with the most painful migraine I had ever experienced._

 _When I analyzed it and used my Intuition to investigate exactly_ _ **what**_ _it was warning me about… I discovered it was cautioning me about Insomnia's Invasion during the peace treaty signing. I try to ignore it most of the time, but… my Intuition is somewhat clairvoyant in a very specific sense. It can warn me of disasters days ahead of time. But, it was always small-scale warnings before that night._

 _Like, an caravan getting attacked, the lights in a town giving out in the middle of the night, and other random disasters. I could always warn whoever I needed to or pretend to just 'happen' upon it happening and telling the appropriate people about my 'suspicions'. As an unintended side effect, it_ _ **really**_ _makes people believe in my 'hunches'._

 _Eh, could be worse._

 _Anyway, the warnings usually give me a_ _ **extremely**_ _specific flash of images if I ignored the warnings of those disasters, but… my vision on that night was_ _ **nightmarish**_ _. As I had been asleep when it happened and yet couldn't escape from my dream until it finished, it would have resembled more of a night terror than anything if I didn't have my foreknowledge. It… showed me horrific scenes straight from the film of the Invasion right down to the last detail and even some new ones of thousands of people dying from fallen debris or getting murdered by daemons and Magitek Soldiers._

… _It was_ _ **pure**_ _**hell**_ _._

 _Seeing all those people being murdered and being some unmoving spector, unable to look away or do anything to help… I don't know if it was my own guilty conscience deciding to torment myself with it or not, but knowing what I know and not doing a damn thing to stop it, makes me just as bad as Niflheim. I never wanted to get involved in this mess… I'm such a coward, you know? I act like keeping my hands over my ears and looking away will make this okay. Isn't that_ _ **hilarious**_ _? I keep telling myself 'one person can't make a difference' and 'no one will believe me' but the truth is that I'm a fucking_ _ **coward**_ _._

 _I can say as many pretty words as I like, but it doesn't change the fact that thousands of people are going to die because I wasn't_ _ **brave enough**_ _.I didn't want to get involved so I kept my trap shut about it when I sent my last report to King Regis._

 _ **It's**_ _**sickening**_ _._

… _I, at least, hope the most recent research will be of use to the Crownsguard and Kingsglaive, at least._

 _ **I doubt it**_ _._

 _As dramatic as it sounds, as long as I live, this will be my sin to bear. I could have warned them, but I didn't. The only thing that stopped me was my own_ _ **cowardice**_ _. It's times like these that I really_ _ **hate**_ _myself. I could have easily slipped it into my report. But I was too_ _ **scared**_ _of the consequences if they didn't believe me._

 _...This isn't helping anything. I made my bed, now I must lie in it. Rehashing my mistakes doesn't help anything. And when someone eventually finds out and I end up hated for it, well… that's my just desserts, isn't it?_

 _Regardless, now you know about my big secret. I have a psychic ability that's more trouble than it's worth some days. Anyone that tells you that a psychic ability or even being reincarnated into a fandom that you love is a_ _ **good**_ _thing... Do yourself a favor and punch their_ _ **fucking**_ _teeth out._

 _ **Because it isn't**_ _._ _ **Ever.**_

 _-Kieran_

* * *

T.T Okay, so, first I'm so, so sorry for the late update! I actually got most of this written mid-March, but got somewhat distracted by Mass Effect Andromeda coming out and then Persona 5. But, a large part of it was me just being _extremely_ frustrated by this chapter. I kept writing and re-writing scenes and even removing stuff, but it keeps _driving me up the fucking wall_.

...

Honestly, this is as good as it's gonna get. For those who preferred by shorter chapters… _I'M SO SORRY_. Tbh, it was originally over 20,000 words. That was when I realized I was adding in way too many details. T.T _So. Many. Details._

Anyway, I hope the length makes up for time between updates. Though I'm currently determined to beat P5 before I advance in my story. Tbh, the very idea of the Ardyn Meeting is making me anxious for all sorts of reasons. Hopefully, I don't disappoint…

18,100 words was the total length of this chapter and I'm still so confused. I mean, sure, I was intending on doing maybe 8,000 or 9,000 words for this, but the chapter got away from me. Anyway, events will start picking up after this chapter and we'll be getting around to the good stuff. Hopefully.

I probably placed too many scenes on Ky's interactions with the main four, but it's needed to develop his relationship with them. Plus, anyone who knows me knows that I _adore_ interactions like that. I'm hoping it gives some insight into Ky's personality as well.

Now that I said all of that, thank you all for your dedicated support. On both and AO3, you've all been so kind to read my story and I truly appreciate that. I'm honestly surprised that people are still reading it considering I haven't updated in so long. Nonetheless, I thank each and every one of you for taking the time to read this fic of mine.

Until next time,

-Riva


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